tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62132677629123487582024-03-05T07:01:33.801+02:00The Passionate ProfessionalJoin me in my adventures as I Passionately make my way through life :)The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-44415329406204121832014-09-28T15:11:00.004+02:002014-09-28T15:11:54.874+02:00The Great Migration<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: #777777; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22px;">So with the official launch of <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.org/" target="_blank">The Passionate Professional</a> website, I decided to migrate my blog (yes, this is where it all started) from my original blogging platform to the website. Do have a read on how and why I started the blog over a year and a half ago, and the journey from then to where we are now...</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #777777; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 22px;">I will continue to post about my adventures, learnings and anecdotes that I think will be useful and interesting (both related to the incubator and otherwise) so I invite you to once again join me on whats already been an incredible journey and I'm sure promises to only get more exciting as we power on ahead to change the world... one passionate professional at a time :)</span></span></div>
The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-30098683735773078482014-09-25T12:04:00.000+02:002014-09-27T12:31:48.795+02:00Walk your Talk<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The power of a simple walk in the park... </i></span><br>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of highlights of the Fortune Program was the morning I met Gerry Laybourne and was introduced to the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gerry-laybourne/all-it-takes-is-a-walk-in_b_2100124.html" target="_blank">Global Mentoring Walk</a> - an initiative which convenes established women leaders and emerging women leaders to walk together in their communities across the globe, with the intention to build a Mentoring relationship - </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">such a simple, yet impactful concept. I was appalled to learn that despite the </span><a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/04/an-opportunity-of-lifetime_24.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Fortune Program</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> hosting South African mentees since 2006, South Africa was yet to be part of the list of over 24 countries participating in this Global movement. The minute I stepped out of Gerry’s apartment, I was determined to change that and bring the event home. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As soon as I returned to South Africa, one of my immediate follow-ups was emailing the Vital Voices staff to find out how do I get involved. I submitted an application and was successfully selected to be the Flag Bearer for the Debut South African Mentoring Walk at the end of September 2013.Despite the short lead time and minimal funding, but with much passion, plenty support from family and friends, and of course a fantastic selection of Mentors and Mentees alike, we successfully hosted the first ever Global Mentoring Walk in South Africa on 16th November 2013. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>Debut Mentoring Walk South Africa 2013 featured on Morning Live</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the end of January 2014, Vital Voices notified the Flag Bearers of the prospect to host an <a href="http://www.vitalvoices.org/node/627" target="_blank">International Women’s Day Mentoring Walk</a> on 8 March 2014. Being the opportunist that I am, I jumped at the opportunity (despite having a flight to India departing on the evening of the proposed event!) and once again hosted an incredibly impactful event, already vastly improved from the first event based on feedback and requests from the Mentors and Mentees that attended. The event was a resounding success and I was left more inspired than ever to continue with the project. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>International Women's Day Mentoring Walk 2014</i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Seeing the value and impact that the event has had, and realising that November 2014 was too long to wait to have the next event, we celebrated Nelson Mandela’s birthday by hosting a Mandela Day Mentoring Walk, this time in partnership with <i>Careers for a Powerful You </i>(<a href="http://www.c4you.co.za/" target="_blank">C4U</a>) at the symbolic Union Bulidings in Pretoria. Our Mentors gave their 67 Minutes of Service by mentoring 67 Mentees. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So after a third hugely successful event within 9 months, I saw a clear “demand” for more events, and as a result of the powerful Mentorship Workshop and activities designed around the “Walk” component of the event, have also seen an exponential increase in the demand for services in the Mentorship space, another huge driver for founding <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2014/08/when-passion-meets-business-opportunity.html" target="_blank">The Passionate Professional</a>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">So in order to really </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><i>Walk my Talk</i></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> in wanting to pay it forward, and have the power and impact of the Mentoring Walk event extend as far and wide as possible, I have officially created a brand around the </span><a href="http://www.mentoringwalk.co.za/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" target="_blank">Mentoring Walk</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> under The Passionate Professional. This has enable me to take the event beyond just the global annual event to more frequent and specifically themed events. </span><br>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The intention of the Mentoring Walk as a brand is to:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Expand to various cities across South Africa</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The aim is to host the next Global Mentoring Walk South Africa in Johannesburg and Cape Town (and potentially Durban too)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Host themed Mentoring Walks beyond the November event</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Future Mentoring Walks already in the pipeline are as follows </span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">International Women’s Day (March 2015)</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Freedom Day (April 2015)</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Youth Month (June 2015)</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mandela Day (July 2015)</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">South African Women’s Month (August 2015)</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and upon request/invite from various companies/NGOs as CSI and/or internal Mentoring Programs</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So here we go, full steam ahead to incubating leaders through Mentorship, with a simple Walk in the Park. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Note: Applications for the 2014 Global Mentoring Walk South Africa will be opening on the 28th September. For more updates follow The Passionate Professional <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thepassionateprofessional" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a></b></span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-42084977993689223782014-08-26T23:20:00.003+02:002014-08-26T23:20:53.348+02:00Ideas Worth Spreading<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>Are women set to be the Engineers of the future?</b></i></span></span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was a huge honour to be invited to give a <a href="http://www.ted.com/" target="_blank">TEDTalk</a> at the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Tedxjohannesburg?fref=ts" target="_blank">TEDxJohannesburg </a>event last year!! Naturally, I chose to talk about my passions – women, engineering and paying it forward! </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Being the type of speaker who prefer to talk off the cuff made preparing for the talk probably one of the hardest and most stressful things I've had to do. After much planning, rehearsals and sleepless nights, I fast realised that none of these can replace speaking from the heart, and with conviction about that which you'e most passionate about. So that's the approach I took and alas, I guess the success of the result is left up to the audience to decide. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So let me not write much more for this post, but rather let the talk speak for itself ;)</span></span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-49076401295054354042014-08-16T14:25:00.000+02:002014-08-16T14:25:08.641+02:00When Passion meets Business Opportunity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>Turning a Blog into a Business</b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Heeding one of the biggest learnings from <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/04/an-opportunity-of-lifetime_24.html" target="_blank">the program</a> – that as noble as it may be, running an NPO full-time is not financially sustainable, or simply put, it’s a poor optimization of a high-potential, ambitious 30 year old in the prime of her career – I took the next big step in “putting my learning into action”. And let’s just say that I didn’t resign from a lucrative job only on a leap of faith - it was a bit more of a calculated risk ;)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition to dedicating “more” of my time to growing the NPO, I resigned for another reason. I have always been extremely passionate about people development. Mentorship, in particular, played a big role in my. So much so that I often say that I am a product of Mentorship – both inadvertently and purposefully, especially over the past 5 to 7 years, through the non-profit organisation that I run (<a href="http://www.womeng.org/" target="_blank">SAWomEng</a>), the thriving engineering career that I had with a corporate engineering company, some leadership programs/opportunities that I have participated in over the years, but the most impactful certainly being the Fortune program last year. In being so passionate about the power of mentorship and in line with my deep-seated commitment to “paying it forward”, I once again put my learnings into practice and I went on to turn this burning Passion into a Business Opportunity. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After fulfilling my desire to dedicating a few months full-time to SAWomEng, I started my own business venture heeding the learning from the program “don’t be ashamed to make money from doing good” – I founded The Passionate Professional (who knew the simple naming of a blog would be the catalyst to something so much greater!)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/thepassionateprofessional" target="_blank">The Passionate Professional</a> is a Leadership Incubator focused on developing youth and young professionals through Mentorship, with the intention of building a socially conscious generation of leaders and entrepreneurs with a core focus on giving back to society.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Attesting much of my own success to the role that my mentors (both formal and informal) and the mentorship programs I have been fortunate to participate in have played in my life, I founded the incubator to address the severely lacking need for sound and impactful Mentorship Programs and Leadership Development in South Africa. The incubator serves as a platform enabling me to design and facilitate programs based on my experience, thereby bringing the unique exposure, learnings and opportunities that I have so generously been afforded to those who may not otherwise have access to these.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Passionate Professional, while conceptualised post my resignation, was only formally recently and is as such still in its “incubation” phase itself. However, with a sound and exciting service offering well mapped out and broken down into a 4-phase roll-out over the next 2 years, this is certainly going to be an exciting space to watch. Through the incubator, I ambitiously aim to spear-head a paradigm shift in the way Mentorship in South Africa is approached and practiced. So I invite you to join me on this journey and be a part of the magic that promised to unfold. </span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-30944138921064125292014-08-11T17:47:00.000+02:002014-08-11T17:47:17.228+02:00Turning Needs into Opportunities<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Removing the boundaries </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In dedicating ourselves more full time to the NPO, the co-founder, Naadiya Moosajee and I, also inadvertently spotted an opportunity! In facilitating a number of up-skilling workshops to our <a href="http://www.womeng.org/" target="_blank">WomEng</a> beneficiaries, ranging from How to do an Elevator Pitch, to Visioning and The Art of Networking, we started getting feedback from the non-engineers, as well as the men in the room about how much they enjoyed/benefited/didn't realize they needed what they had just experienced. We started to crowd-source some more feedback in a more active fashion and fast realized that the content we had developed was applicable, no... was desperately craved, by an entire market that fell beyond the scope of the NPO and the beneficiaries that came through our programs. That’s when we decided to turn this need into a Business Opportunity. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Essentially leveraging off the events and training expertise acquired in running and growing WomEng, we founded JourneyMap earlier this year, as a sister company to the NPO, as a platform to extend these expertise to the scope beyond WomEng (non-engineers, and not limited to Women).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We didn’t just see this as a business opportunity for us, but also as a direct benefit for the NPO. We have structured the company such that a percentage of the profits generated are fed back into WomEng, thereby creating an additional, and more stable, revenue source for the NPO beyond corporate sponsorships and grants. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While JourneyMap is still in its infancy, it is already starting to make an impact and it’s just a matter of time until this venture grows wings. Once again showing how putting my learnings into practice have started to develop the social entrepreneur in me. And trust me, there’s much more to follow… but time to bring this post to end, so we’ll have to talk about the rest of my ventures in the posts to follow ;) </span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-29838457161037518272014-08-08T14:43:00.002+02:002014-08-08T14:46:18.005+02:00Taking a Leap of Faith<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>The next chapter of the <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-re-awakening.html" target="_blank">Re-Awakening</a></b></i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Five months after returning from the program, and after much reflection, consultation (putting my Mentors to good use), projection, and with recalling how so many of stories that the successful businesswomen we interacted with on the program started with “I took a leap of faith…”, I decided it was time that I took mine - I resigned from my thriving engineering career! Not because I hated, or even disliked my job, but more so because there was something inside of me that was just saying that Now is the Time! Now is the time to live my passion. Now is the time to take the risk. Now is the time to give back. Now is the time to my learnings into practice. Now is just the Time! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My plan was to initially dedicate myself more “full-time” to my passion, the NPO <a href="http://www.womeng.org/" target="_blank">WomEng</a> (previously known as SAWomEng) that had played such a big role in my life over the last 7 years – joining first as a beneficiary, then very soon becoming a founding member of one of the core divisions, <a href="http://www.womeng.org/page/about-girleng" target="_blank">GirlEng</a>, and at the time of resigning, being in the role of Managing Director of the organisation. But for the last 7 years, it was always as a volunteer, over and above my studies, and then my full time job as an engineer – even managing and growing an entire division while living and working abroad in Germany! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The decision was made in a big part so that I could call on my learnings from <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/04/an-opportunity-of-lifetime_24.html" target="_blank">the program</a> and take the NPO to the next level. Realising that if, over the last 8 years we could achieve what we did as volunteers, imagine what potential for growth and expansion lie ahead if even just a few months I could dedicate myself more “full-time” to the organization? This was also largely part of my commitment to “paying it forward”. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looking back, the decision was certainly not in vain. Since resigning in October 2013, the impact of not just dedicating more focused time, but going in with a new mindset, leveraging off the learnings, networks and inspiration from the program, have been astounding. Everything from a significant increase in funds and sponsorship raised, to our global expansion starting with the launch of our first programs in Kenya in 2014 (hence dropping the “SA” in SAWomEng!), to literally spear-heading an overhaul in the operational structure and running of the organization, all significantly increasing the reach and depth of the work we do! And it hasn’t even been a full year yet! I remain excited and know that there are only greater things to come in this space… </span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-45108484511653387772014-08-04T00:06:00.001+02:002014-08-04T00:06:27.318+02:00Blogging it Forward<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>The Inspiration behind <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-re-awakening.html" target="_blank">The Re-Awakening</a></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Subsequent to my impactful experience on the </span><a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/04/an-opportunity-of-lifetime_24.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Fortune Program</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> in 2013, I was determined to make the investment in me count, and committed to sharing my learnings and “paying it forward”. My immediate give-back was to start </span><a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">this blog</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, to create a platform to share my learnings and experiences, knowing that I was about to embark on an incredible journey – just what that meant, I was yet to find out!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For me the most powerful posts were those detailing my <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/05/fortuneus-state-department-global.html" target="_blank">day-to-day activities</a> and thereafter <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/05/powerful-lessons-learnt-and-meaningful.html" target="_blank">my learnings</a> from the program so that any other young, determined leaders could vicariously traverse my journey and indirectly benefit from the time, resources and unique opportunities afforded to me by being selected for the program. In doing so, the investment in one woman from South Africa, resulted in the benefits of the Program having (and continuing to have) an exponential reach across the globe. Post the blog being written, excerpts have been published in a number of local, international and web-based publications, and have also result in a number of number of speaking engagements. As such the sharing continues. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In writing the blog initially I did have my own doubts and fears on how it would be received. And yes, since launching it I haven’t quite been able to maintain and update it as I initially hoped. But nonetheless, I do believe that by not being ruled by fear of receptivity and despite a lengthily absence from posting, it has served a valuable purpose. However, beyond just a powerful platform for sharing, the full extent of the reach, impact and incredible ripple-effect of the blog, as a direct result from the program, was (and to some extent still is) yet to be realised. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do stay-tuned and read the next few posts to follow to see just what I mean :)</span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-91355589757984222702014-08-03T23:52:00.001+02:002014-08-03T23:52:41.789+02:00The Re-Awakening...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I was recently completing an application which required me to answer a question around what have I done/accomplished to date since my time on the </span><a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/04/an-opportunity-of-lifetime_24.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">Fortune Program</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> just over a year ago? I initially started drafting the answer, aiming to be concise and follow the instruction of limiting the answer to 500 words. But as I said writing and, as such, reflecting on the incredible year that had just passed, it fast became apparent that I much more to share than the 500 words would allow. It was no longer just about what I had done, but all of a sudden I started reflecting on my thought-processes, lessons learnt, milestones achieved and even putting plans in action moving forward. I was so inspired and excited during the process - it seemed that the content was just flowing from my head (and certainly my heart) straight out through my fingers, almost faster than they could type. Before I knew it, I was barely done with the first 2 points and I was well over my word limit! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I realised that as I continued I needed to be more succinct. This meant cutting out much of emotion and thought-process behind some of the activities/accomplishments. It seemed a shame to do so, as I just felt an urge to write. But with the purpose in mind, I went on the complete the question as instructed – when complete, despite really trying, I was still over the word limit and had to review and shorten further. But it was in doing just this – returning to edit my very first point – that the inspiration and reminder came:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I actually had the perfect platform to (continue) sharing thoughts, ideas, learnings and the like! And that it being very seldom that I found myself this inspired to simply write, I should take advantage and make the most of this opportunity… </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And so this is how I find myself here once again, after over a year, re-awaking this platform for the purpose it was launched – to <a href="http://www.thepassionateprofessional.blogspot.com/2013/05/powerful-lessons-learnt-and-meaningful.html" target="_blank">share my thoughts and learnings</a> with the world. And if these can inspire, assist, encourage and/or enable even one more person to do more… to be more, then my time has been well-spent and ripple-effect of positive change continues.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So over the next few days, I will be fleshing out those “500 words” and specifically be posting updates about what I have been up to since my time on the Fortune Program, and perhaps even give a sneak-peak into… where to from here? ;)</span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-86909149820519982512013-08-13T21:13:00.002+02:002013-08-13T21:13:52.655+02:00The Magic of Investing in People<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11.0pt;">I was recently invited to facilitate a Personal Branding workshop, on behalf of SAWomEng,
as part of a bigger Girl’s Networking Day hosted by Sasol. The event was
attended by about a hundred sparkly eyed, enthused and energetic high-school
girls! My job was to motivate and inspire them to discover their “onlyness” and
celebrate their individuality. The only thing is... I think I was the one who was
left most inspired!!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">With
many learners these days being plagued by apathy, laziness and sheer
indifference, it was so refreshing to be able to interact and engage with young
girls so willing to learn and just wanting to absorb every last inkling of
everything they were exposed to. For me, it simply reiterated my belief that
when you invest in someone, when you make the time to show them that they and
their needs are important too, they will reciprocate. Maybe not immediately, and
it might take some effort, but it all becomes so worth it when you see the
difference that a simple belief in someone can make.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWoYEg7eMv-ZG1aXTUNkIoHa_xOXCr4j6RQEayXX90SiGakh_xNk6mVXbdNye4wWYVxoeN5Ws1-OQ4l_tpLhCOpXBms08vNFXQ_SB2wGPuR0aHmUuRsZSbYC7YIon35uP97gHjYoeNQ-Q/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWoYEg7eMv-ZG1aXTUNkIoHa_xOXCr4j6RQEayXX90SiGakh_xNk6mVXbdNye4wWYVxoeN5Ws1-OQ4l_tpLhCOpXBms08vNFXQ_SB2wGPuR0aHmUuRsZSbYC7YIon35uP97gHjYoeNQ-Q/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">How
often do we find ourselves saying “Kids these days!” and shaking our heads in
dismay? How quick are we to brand kids as lazy or call them incompetent? Yes,
no doubt there are multiple factors at play - our distressed education system,
teachers constantly being on strike, kids coming from troubled homes - but
instead of blaming these factors, which are often out of our direct control,
perhaps we should look at this a different way. What is in our control? How can
each of us give a little bit of our time and effort to invest in someone, even
in a small way? Try it.. You may just be surprised by the magic that results!!
;)</span></span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-26562831072194281292013-08-08T23:51:00.001+02:002013-08-09T00:57:58.592+02:00Take 2...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So all it took was a little motivation, coupled with a
lot of inspiration (from being surrounded by some phenomenal bloggers), to get
me to try a “Take 2…” at this blogging thing! After a whirlwind start with so
much to share (the length of my last few posts says it all!), I slipped into a
bit of an abyss called “Life” and found myself in a complete state of
overwhelm. Next thing you know, it’s almost 3 months, gazillion incredible
opportunities/ events/ adventures, but 0 blogs later… and I’m like, I’m sure this
is<b> not</b> how this supposed to work
(not even <i>the passionate procrastinator </i>could
justify this one!). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UFD6OPXmb8bUjblhotTVFj003dEoOPDC8rvLrFOWxosOUunrjd5N8SyCIimM9Eh5N8sS034R9Dt74S66SFUw0Ow01UqDV8vkuQq2iO_kLxd12XrXPmfGAsYe4zRUPmOPArY5dmppGcI/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UFD6OPXmb8bUjblhotTVFj003dEoOPDC8rvLrFOWxosOUunrjd5N8SyCIimM9Eh5N8sS034R9Dt74S66SFUw0Ow01UqDV8vkuQq2iO_kLxd12XrXPmfGAsYe4zRUPmOPArY5dmppGcI/s320/photo.JPG" width="232"></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But it seems like an intervention was in store and I found myself at the awesome <a href="http://www.joziliciousblog.co.za/">Jozilicious</a> mixer
yesterday, and as I was sharing some of my stories with my newly found friends
(yes, <i>the passionate mingler </i>was in
action), I realised, there is still so much I want to share/write about… and
more importantly, that “being too busy” is simply not a good enough excuse!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">…and what better day to get started (again!) than on my 30</span><sup style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">th</sup><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Birthday! I know it’s a year that daunts most people,
but when I woke up this morning, I was filled with an immense sense of content
and readiness to tackle this next chapter. I have been incredibly fortunate to
have had an amazing 20's decade, but that was just laying the
foundation. As I look forward, there is SO much that I want to do, to achieve - and I once again invite you to join me on what promises to be an exciting journey ahead…</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So keep a look out, definitely more to come in this
space as I attempt to not fall off this "bicycle" by making sure I keep this blog moving! Here’s to a bountiful, informative and exhilarating Take 2… :)</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-23701227928532429562013-05-28T00:07:00.000+02:002013-05-28T20:33:10.156+02:00Powerful Lessons Learnt and Meaningful Take-Aways<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fortune/U.S. State Department Global Mentorship Exchange Program (Part 2)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Date: Work in progress since 1 May 2013 till published<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Place: New York to Johannesburg - from office desks, hotel rooms to lying in bed</span><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So after a 4 week overload of information, stimulation and inspiration, I’ve finally managed to take some time to process and reflect on the extraordinary happenings during the program. It’s easy to go from meeting to meeting, workshop to workshop and feel great about it afterwards. But for me it’s about so much more than just that. It’s about consolidating the learnings and information and really thinking about how has this process enriched my life, what did I really learn and what is it that I am going to do with all of this?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writing this blog was part of the answer to each of those questions. In order to write this, I really needed to sit down and think about what’s changed in me over the last month. Instead of just having pockets of knowledge and advice in separate areas, the process of writing required me to consolidate my learnings and draw a holistic overview of how everything is connected. And most importantly, writing this blog is the first part of what I plan to do with all of this – and that is to SHARE my learnings. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are some parts of the learning that are very hard to describe in writing, but these will be shared in my “doing” as I go forward on my journey. For now though, that which I can share in writing, is presented here. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of a Brand</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In all honesty, before I embarked on my time spent with the company, I very much thought of IBM as a computer and software company. Little did I know that they’re world leaders in technology, innovation, business consulting and so much more! And at first I questioned the way the brand was represented. But I soon discovered a very different and powerful branding strategy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Considering that the entity that IBM services is not the average man on the street, but rather institutions such as businesses, corporations, banks and governments, their brand marketing is not focused on the individual consumer like you and I. But when you look at the magnitude and calibre of the <a href="http://www-01.ibm.com/software/success/cssdb.nsf/customerVW?OpenView&Count=10&RestrictToCategory=corp&cty=en_us">clients</a> that they do service, you realise that they do indeed have a very well established brand in the relevant space that they play in. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But that is not the powerful strategy I was referring to. What I was more impressed by was the focus on which IBM puts on establishing a respected brand <i>internally</i>, to its very own employees. I mentioned the term “IBM’er” repeatedly in my previous blog. This is because the concept of the IBM’er came up repeatedly, from everyone I interacted with at the company - be it the man on the ground or the most senior leaders. This sense of identity, of belonging, for a company that’s over 430 000 employees strong, is simply astounding!! It is the finest example of “<i>Brand around product vs Brand around purpose</i>”. At IBM, the employees I interacted with all spoke about a sense of purpose, and with that purpose came the sense of pride to be part of this “family”. It’s often said that it’s the people that drive a company’s success, and if you look at IBM’s success track record, the power of internalising a brand to such an extent could not be more evident! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of You</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Keeping in line with the Power of a Brand, this is not just limited to companies or products. This is equally, if not more, important when it comes to your </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Personal Brand</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If there was one clear message that resonated in all the discussions with a multitude of leaders, both with IBM and through the Vital Voices program, it was certainly around <b>The Power of YOU</b>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We often spend so much time and energy trying to be who we think our boss, our partner, the world wants us to be, that we rarely ever stop to understand who we really are and what potential lies within us. There is nothing more powerful than being your authentic self, and once you embrace that, you have freed up all that energy to contribute to something more meaningful and constructive. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Continuously seeking the approval of the masses is frivolous and exhausting. Chris Quinn says, “<i>Don’t spend so much time thinking about what people think about what you do, just do it!</i>” I will admit that this is easier said than done and I too still struggle with this. The need to be liked, to desire to have people agree with me, the fear of negative criticism – I am still finding my way through it all. But having heard these amazing women, even during the tough times, all embracing the concept of the Power of You, was certainly a powerful affirmation to stay the course and keep focusing on getting myself in this space. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Susan McPherson<b> </b>spoke of the concept of “<i>onlyness</i>” – that which distinguishes us from others. It is this<i> “Onlyness”</i> that we should be <u>celebrating</u>, and not trying to change. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A large part of being successful is knowing who you are, because only once you understand the Power of You, can you build your reputation, your Personal Brand. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>(From Left to Right) Lounging around with Gerri Laybourne, Founder Oxygen Media and her bosom buddy Donna Orender, past WNBA President; Pattie Sellers, Senior Editor in Chief of Fortune interviewing New York Council Speaker, Chris Quinn; Alyse Nelson, CEO Vital Voices moderating a panel discussion with <span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">Senior Vice President Fenton Media and the extraordinary Beth Brooke, Global Vice Chair E&Y; Christiane Amanpour of CNN</span></span></span></i></span></td></tr>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of Choice</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the hot topic for many career women being around “<i>work-life balance</i>”, or rather the existence thereof, it was interesting to hear what these extremely successful individuals had to say. What came through was that the first thing to understand about “<i>work-life balance</i>” is that is actually more about“<i>work-life</i></span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> choices</i></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Balance” means different things to different people. The world has this perfectly painted picture of what a “balanced” life looks like. And the minute we deviate from it, everyone points fingers judgmentally and says, “<i>Look, it’s all about her career!</i>”, or “<i>Shame, she gave up an amazing career and is now stuck as a house-wife</i>.” But at the end of the day, it’s not about pleasing the world. It’s about making choices and being comfortable with them. Just because your choices lead to a life which does not fit your neighbour’s definition of “balanced”, it doesn’t mean it wasn’t the right choice for your life in your context. And more importantly, having a life that isn’t “balanced” doesn’t have to necessarily be a negative thing. After all, the extremely successful Gerri Laybourne emphatically said “<i>I have lived a joyous life of imbalance</i>”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, with ambitions of a successful career, there will no doubt be challenges and sacrifices that need to be made. There should be no delusions around this, but giving these the due consideration that they deserve is an integral part of the “work-life choices” that one makes. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This one was very clear and succinct: If you’re comfortable in your job, then you’re not growing!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Few things offer better growth than a new challenge. Yes, it’s very easy to fall into a comfort zone, and more dangerous is that often we don’t even realise that that’s what has happened. That’s where the importance of rotation programs, having a good manager, being on good development program and/or just being proactive has the most value.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Both <a href="http://www.ibm.com/us/en/">IBM</a> and <a href="http://www.sasol.com/sasol_internet/frontend/navigation.jsp?navid=1&rootid=1">Sasol</a>, where I currently work, have a fantastic rotation policy. Being matrix organisations, they encourage lateral movement to enhance vertical growth. A rotation model is not always easy - both for management, where it means they have to allow talented individuals to leave their teams; and for individuals, where it means moving out of a comfort zone. But the results often speak for itself. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Depending on the company structure and/or programs, this may not necessarily be the way new challenges and opportunities are presented to you. But that’s when you need to either find an environment that cultivates this, or be proactive about seeking new challenges outside of your current space. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of Sharing Power</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Often in very male dominated environments, when women do succeed, they hold onto their success. Sometimes so tightly, that they make it even more difficult for their female counterparts to progress. I asked a number of the leaders I met about this and I received some great feedback on why, as leaders, they choose </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>not</i></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> to do this.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many of these leaders spoke about how “<i>inclusive leadership</i>” is a more progressive style of leadership and something that women are inherently better at. In the past women often felt like they had to lead like men in order to succeed in a man’s world, and often that was what worked against them more than anything. This was largely as a result of the fact that this kind of leadership style was not necessarily one that came naturally to them (and this again speaks to exploiting the Power of You, instead of trying to be someone else). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They went on to share that most successful people will show that power is more likely to expand when shared. When you shine a light on someone else, it reflects positively on you too. Often, it enhances your reputation as leader when you celebrate the successes of those around you. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Or quite simply put, Susan McPherson says “<i>It’s easier to be nice than to be mean.</i>”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unfortunately this is not always the mind-set of the leaders we are exposed to in our everyday lives. But being exposed to leaders who do actually think this way, has really got me thinking about how do we spread this message? How do we encourage this to become the norm? I am determined to delve more into this and do some work around promoting inclusive leadership, and also looking into ways on how, as women looking to succeed and grow, do we tackle leaders who don’t practise this? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of Paying It Forward </i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When people hear the phrase “<i>paying it forward</i>” they often think it needs to be in some huge, complex,</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">magnificent way like starting a Non-Profit or a Movement of sorts that tackles massive, life-threatening issues around the world. If one has the capacity, resources and passion to do just that, then that’s great. But “<i>paying it forward</i>” is no less valuable when it is done in your immediate space, in an unstructured manner, integrated into your day-to-day activities by just yourself or a handful of partners. It simply means finding a way to help make a positive change in your own life, and the lives of those around you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It doesn't even have to be in the form of a novel, grand idea. Take the concept of the <a href="http://www.bottomlessclosetnyc.org/">Bottom Closet</a>, which was started off by affluent executives donating business attire to the less privileged to help these women enhance their confidence and create a better impression when interviewing. This is such a reproducible concept – something that we can each easily do by ourselves, and not even limited to just women. This is certainly something I am going to start encouraging in both my work and community environment.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">More so, sometimes “<i>paying it forward</i>” is as simple as getting a conversation started. My personal area of interest in doing so is around people development and women empowerment. Now in a country plagued by BEE and quota’s and diversity incentives etc, a term such as <b><i>women empowerment</i></b> is often misunderstood as getting the numbers of women in relevant positions up for the sake of compliance. I’m saying NO, women empowerment <i>actually</i> means investing in women, enhancing their skills, expanding their exposure, encouraging them to learn and grow <b><i>SO THAT</i></b> they can then build up the right skills set, experience and qualifications to be excellent at what they do and get into relevant positions based on MERIT! And thereafter encouraging these women to use their success to help those around them succeed to create a positive change reaction of success. This is the conversation that I want to get started and this is where I plan on directing my mission to “<i>pay it forward</i>”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of Mentorship</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When you interview for a job, one of the first things the interviewer usually asks about is what experience do you have. In a world where competency is measured by experience, why would you limit yourself to only your own? By of having a mentor, you’re able to leverage off their experiences, and learn from their successes and failures. Imagine the value that this adds to your competency measure!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mentorship can take place in various forms - oftentimes it’s through structured programs in the workplace, through organised programs, or certainly through exchange programs like this amazing one - and that is really fantastic and powerful, but mentorship doesn’t always have to be through formal or structured channels. Mentorship can be any engagement with an individual or group of individuals who you can learn from and who are willing to guide you in their expertise of choice. Sometimes this kind of mentorship can be the most powerful, but it’s up to us to be open to mentoring that happens inadvertently/naturally. Be willing to learn from other’s to help you grow. As Beth Brookes says about learning from others, “<i>I steal everything. I’m an amalgamation of everyone I meet.</i>” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We also need to learn to pick up cues on when people are opening themselves up to help us. That conversation can be the start of great things to come!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And as valuable it is to have a mentor or mentors is in your own life, in line with Paying it Forward, it’s equally important, and a tremendous learning and growth experience to mentor others. When mentoring others, take some advice from Christiane Amanpour. She says “<i>Always be your best, and make other’s want to be their best</i>”. But remember, mentoring is more than just inspiring others, it’s about being there to guide your mentees along the way and as Alyse Nelson says, “<i>The best gift that you can give your mentee is to still be there for them when they fail.</i>” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Being both a mentee and a mentor is one of the most invaluable gifts you can give <i>yourself</i>! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of Networks</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the high level of corruption and fraud taking place in South Africa, the term “<i>It’s about who you know</i>” is very often seen in a very negative light, and rightfully so under these circumstances. But the Power of Networks looks at “<i>It’s about who you know</i>” in a very different context. The networks that I’m talking about are built on credibility, reputation and trust. If you are able to build this kind of network, you have just extended the boundaries of possibility infinitely.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The power of having networks calls on everything I have already spoken about – it’s these networks that you can call upon when you find yourself in a comfort zone and you’re looking for doors to be opened to a new challenge. It’s these networks that you can call upon when you’re looking for a mentor or someone to guide you in making critical decisions. These are the networks that, because they’re built on trust and common ground, you can turn to when you find yourself losing the Power of You or looking for guidance on making your “<i>work-life choices</i>”. It’s also these networks that you can call on to help you find ways and means of paying it forward and possibly even doing so together.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Part of practising the Power of Sharing Power can be the opportunity to share your networks with those who you trust and believe can use them for good. And most definitely these networks, these allies are the people you can call on to help you promote both the brand of your company and yourself. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have had the unique opportunity to expand my network to include some of the most extraordinary people through this program. The possibility for collaboration, shared learning, assistance, and potential is unlimited! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don’t ever underestimate the Power of Networks. This is your opportunity to have levers of influence within reach and using these to your advantage. But at the same time, remember, networks are kept alive with integrity and trust, and the minute this is broken, it is very hard to re-establish. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The Power of Friendship</i><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Over and above everything else, one of my greatest take-aways from the program is the set of friends I have made. I specifically call them “friends” because the relationships that were built with my <a href="http://www.vitalvoices.org/blog/2013/04/global-women%E2%80%99s-mentoring-partnership-welcome-2013-participants">26 fellow mentees </a>extends far beyond just a network. There we were, from 17 different countries, an age range spanning almost 20 years, and from a multitude of cultural backgrounds, yet there was a golden thread that bonded us all. These phenomenal women, each no doubt the next leading CEO’s, President’s, Change-makers in their own countries and beyond, have each enhanced my life in such a special way. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Building friendships and making memories with my <a href="http://www.vitalvoices.org/blog/2013/04/global-women%E2%80%99s-mentoring-partnership-welcome-2013-participants">26 fellow mentees</a> from all around the world</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I look forward to growing these relationships and extract a great deal of comfort knowing that I have so much support </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">from all 4 corners of the world </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">as I take these powerful learnings into my own endeavours!! This is only the beginning...</span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-47847371953054684202013-05-26T23:32:00.000+02:002013-05-28T19:58:44.656+02:00My Incredible IBM Experience<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fortune/U.S. State Department Global Mentorship Exchange Program (Part 1)</span></i></b><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Date: Work in progress since 1 May 2013 till published</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Place: New York to Johannesburg - from office desks, hotel rooms to lying in bed</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I know it’s been over a month since my last post, but when you read about what it is that kept me busy during this time, I hope I’ll be heartily forgiven!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In my last post I wrote about the incredible program that I had just embarked on and detailed the amazing Week 1 activities. Soon after that I was whipped up into a “whirlwind adventure” that has without a doubt enthused and invigorated me down to the very core of my being! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s taken me a good few days to sit back and digest the incredible happenings of the last 3 weeks and as I sit here trying to gather my thoughts and write it all up, it still all just feel like some dream that transpired in a parallel universe! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Because there’s so much I want to share with you, I decided to break it up into two parts: The first is really a blow-by-blow description of My Experience – the day to day happenings and activities I engaged in, so I reckon you make yourself comfortable as it’s a detailed, but hopefully captivating, read :)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Then next, I will write about My Learnings - the impact the program has had on me, what I’ve taken away from it, and what I hope to go forward and do with this. For those who aren’t into details, wait till tomorrow, when this one will be posted ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So let’s get going:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For my mentorship component of the program I was partnered with IBM. Having briefly chatted to my program coordinator prior to my arrival in the US, I knew they were going to put an absolutely amazing program together for me. Little did I know that “amazing” would be the understatement of the century! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 1</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From the very first walk from my hotel to IBM, it was clear that I was in New York. Within 10 minutes I walked past the Trump Tower, Central Park, Carnegie Hall, 5<sup>th </sup>Avenue, a dozen Starbucks and countless yellow cabs! I couldn’t help but grin all the way to work.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was greeted by my program coordinator, Sophia Tu, who would subsequently become my closest counterpart in my adventures and a wonderful friend. First up was a morning spent with the Executive Director of Enterprise Social Strategy and Programs at the newly renovated IBM Design Lab. From the very first step through the door, I was wow’ed by what I saw. Truly an inspired space that nurtured creativity and sparked the imagination. Ethan was equally as inspiring as he spoke with passion about being a proud IBM’er (the very first time I was introduced to this concept). I also learnt about the evolution of the graphics around IBM logo and the significance of the IBM brand being adequately represented on a vast array of platforms. A brilliant introduction to IBM as a company and a great start for what lied ahead! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Speaking to my passion for STEM exposure and learner development in the field, my program included a visit to the very first <a href="http://www.ptechnyc.org/site/default.aspx?PageID=1">P-Tech</a> (Pathways in Technology Early College High school) in Brooklyn, first started in 2011. This fantastic concept developed by IBM in partnership with NYC Department of Education, NYC College of Technology and the City University of NY, is revolutionising secondary and post-secondary education in the US. It was endearing to see the effort and passion that was put into steering education, especially in technical fields, in a new and exciting direction. I will definitely be keeping my eyes on this as I’m sure it will be making waves in education in the future!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 2</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today was spent engaging with the vibrant Vice President of Strategy and Innovation, Kinthi Sturtevant and her fabulous Organizational Change Management team. I learnt about how an enormous global organization, that is always at the forefront of innovation, tackles its ever changing environment and ensures that employees remain motivated and engaged. I also had the opportunity to participate in a powerful and extremely inspiring networking call with some amazing women IBM'ers, each doing so much over and above their demanding jobs to promote engineering, technology and leadership growth to women - in absolute awe of their incredible stories and received some great tips and advice for success in my future endeavours. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">(Left) Learning about design from Ethan McCarthy, <span style="text-align: justify;">Executive Director of Enterprise Social Strategy and Programs; (Middle and Right) </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Vice President of Strategy and Innovation, Kinthi Sturtevant and some of her fabulous Organizational Change Management team members</span></span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 3 and 4</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I travelled to upstate New York to IBM’s Somers campus to meet with some more amazing leaders. I was blown away by the inspiring Susan Puglia, Vice President of Global Sales Technical Leadership, who over and above her incredible growth within the company, has also invested a significant amount of time and effort in establishing leadership development programs for technical leaders, especially women, within IBM. She definitely gave me plenty food for thought and I’m sure there is much I can learn from her in the future. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also had the opportunity to meet with Katherine Frase, Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, IBM. This remarkable mother of 4 boys and active member in enhancing her community outside of work, is living proof that anything is possible! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I then headed off to IBM Corporate Headquarters in Armonk to meet with Jen Crozier, Vice President of Global Citizenship Initiatives. This incredible woman shared with me the power of social investment and how to make it an integral part of the company’s strategy. It was clear that when this was the case, and not just something on the side to make the company look/feel good, the potential to create change and have a positive impact is so much greater. Over and about our conversations about her work, Jen also imparted some wonderful pearls of wisdom to me about social identity and growing both within and outside of your “work” environment. I loved our conversation and was glad that my program included more time with her in the next weeks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jen then escorted me to the Armonk hangar where I was to meet my mentor Bridget van Kralingen, Senior Vice President, Global Business Services and her Executive Assistant, Liz Healy. I had the unique opportunity to travel with Bridget and Liz to Bloomington, Illinois to get an inside view of the IBM Client Experience. It was such an absolutely wonderful experience to be exposed to a leader like Bridget, being able to engage with and observe her in so many different environments – in one-on-one conversation, preparing for a big meeting, working with her team, hosting a team dinner and then winding down after a busy trip. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Her poise and warm demeanour are the first things that I took note of. She engages with people in such a meaningful way. From observing the manner in which she interacts in meetings and the questions she poses, I already got a sense of what an incredible mind she has. I was taken aback at how someone in this position, who obviously has an insane schedule, was still willing to take the time out and hear about my story, my goals and objectives and be so willing to contribute in whatever ways she could. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was also really fortunate to get to spend time with her Executive Assistant Liz, who is a whopping success story in her own right. I gained a lot of value from my conversations with her and drew a lot of learning from her own journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As part of my Client Experience adventure, I had an opportunity to spend some time with the IBM State Farm team. State Farm, one of the largest Insurance companies in the US, is one of IBM’s longest standing clients. It was a great opportunity to interact with some client facing IBM’ers and get an insight into what the “Client Experience” means and why it is so important to an innovation giant like IBM. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also had the pleasure of meeting one of State Farm’s leading executives, Dianne Fleming. As a senior woman in the technology space, Dianne has endured many challenges in her career but has not only overcome them, but has gone on to far surpass any obstacles that came her way. It was an absolute pleasure to be in her space. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After an insightful and exciting trip to Bloomington, I returned to New York with Bridget and Liz later that evening and got to spend more time engaging into fruitful and inspiring conversation with them both. I returned to my hotel that night simply overwhelmed at all I had been exposed to in just 4 days with IBM so far!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today’s agenda hosted something very different for this engineer, passionate about people development, but fairly inept when it comes to finance – a day with Treasury! I must admit, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but being hosted by IBM’s ebullient General Auditor Evaristus Mainsah certainly showed me that finance can be exciting and exhilarating too! I learnt about various audit processes, investigation procedures, treasury strategy and capital markets, and even got to visit the IBM trade floor. I had the pleasure to meet with the Assistant Treasurer Pamela Beshoory, who shared with me some thoughts on her leadership strategy both in and outside of the workplace. It was an absolute delight to learn from her and there’ll be plenty of her advice that I will be taking with me as I move forward.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After having the weekend to somewhat round-up my incredible learnings from a jam-packed week 1, and sneaking in a bit of R&R, I was more than ready and enthused to take on week 2. My adventures started at the IBM Learning Centre where I had the opportunity to sit in on one of IBM’s world class Leadership Development programs TechGen. The program brings together high-potential IBM’ers from around the world, and focuses on their development along the technical path with the objective of becoming a distinguished engineer. I had the unique opportunity to sit in with a panel of observers, made up of 4 Distinguished engineers and 2 Vice Presidents, as they assessed the program’s participants work through a series of case studies and technical development exercises designed to rattle their brains and stretch their minds to extreme. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also had a chance to complete my own leadership assessment to get an insight into my leadership styles, how to use my strengths to their fullest and how to build on my talent to become the best leader I can be. The learnings were extremely beneficial and interesting to say the least.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I managed to sit in on almost 2 of the 3 days over which the program ran and was suitably impressed not only by the quality of the employees partaking in the program, but also by the time and commitment that the senior executives were dedicating to the development of these employees, and by the level of detail and effort that had gone into developing a curriculum of such intense standards. It’s no wonder that IBM has the calibre of leaders that they do. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Day 7 I was also afforded an opportunity to have lunch with the delightful Nancy Deviney, Vice President Organizational Change Management who imparted some fantastic advice on the power of building your personal brand. She also shared some pearls of wisdom from her own journey to becoming a leader and as an avid Oprah fan, some wonderful anecdotes on inspiration and being the best you can be. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My day ended off with a wonderful meeting with the endearing Jill Puleri, Vice President Global Industry Leader – Retail. I loved every moment of conversation as Jill took me through her incredible journey. Her openness and willingness to share with me was just so powerful and I walked away from the conversation feeling so empowered and enriched by everything she had shared with me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>(Left) My inspiring mentor, Bridget van Kralingen, </i><i><span style="text-align: justify;">Senior Vice President, Global Business Services,</span> </i><i>and I on our trip to Bloomington; (Middle) An amazing group of Vice Presidents and Distinguished engineers taking the time to assist on the TechGen Leadership program; (Right) The delightful Nancy Deviney, Vice President Organizational Change Management, and myself </i></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 8 </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So today had a rather interesting start - Unlike the cool, but sunny, weather I’d been fortune enough to have had thus far into my trip, today I encountered a wet, stormy New York. Despite my efforts to be delivered as close as possible to the office, I still had to cross one street, which left me completely,hair-drippingly soaked. With no time to dry off, this is how I presented myself to the immaculate Sarah Diamond, General Manager Global Consulting Services, who I would be shadowing for the rest of the day. I could’ve died with embarrassment but it turned out to be a great conversation starter and Sarah was extremely charming in not making me feel much worse. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The rest of the day more than made up for my jerky start. I was invited to partake in a meeting discussing IBM’s growth into Africa and was taken aback, when I was asked by this incredible group of leaders and strategists to give my thoughts and opinions about their strategy. I spent the rest of the day learning from Sarah as she engaged in a number of meetings and from simply watching her go about her (extremely jam-packed) day-to-day work. I also had the privilege of stealing some of her precious time for a one-on-one session to learn about her story, which, coming from a successful career in Britain and then relocating halfway across the world, gave me a very different kind of inspiration compared to what had been exposed to thus far. The day with her was simply brilliant.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 9 – 10</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next 2 days were spent in upstate New York in Yorktown, the home of the <a href="http://www.research.ibm.com/">IBM Watson Research Centre</a>, which is often regarded as the heart of innovation giant, IBM.I was hosted by the charming Abby Lewis, Director of Research Strategy, who gave me a fantastic overview of the magnificent work taking place at the IBM research facility, including an overview of the ground breaking Global Technology Outlook initiative. The fact that IBM filed about 6500 patents last year speaks for itself when it comes to what type of impact these researchers are having.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I also had a pleasure of interacting with Kevin Hutchings, Vice President of Business Development; Guru Banavar, Vice President Industry Solutions Research; David McQueeney, Vice President Technical Strategy and the charismatic Michael Karasick, Vice President and Lab Director. Each of these leaders gave me an insight into IBM’s remarkable research ventures and strategies, which made it clear why they are at the forefront of innovation in a vast array of fields ranging from medicine, linguistics, agriculture, technology, etc, etc, etc! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had the pleasure of meeting a highly talented researcher, Lynne Gignac, who is doing some mind-blowing work on advanced material characterization. Just by getting a short overview of the type of work she is involved in led me to the conclusion that she is possibly on of the smartest people I’ve met. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My second day hosted by Research started off with sitting in on a strategy meeting hosted by Dario Gil, Director of Energy and Natural Resources at the Innovation Solutions Lab. What a fantastic experience to watch a group of masterminds sit together and strategize on how to best engage clients. It was incredible to see something that could somewhat be considered a simple discussion, tackled in such a detailed, constructive manner. This once again reiterated the importance of the “client experience” to IBM. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I then had an educational working lunch experience, sitting in on the Cognitive Enterprise Lab Book Club. It was fascinating to see how idea generation around real working projects were extracted from a “social” meeting gathering such as this. This unconventional approach to research was such a fantastic way in which IBM research cultivates an environment that inspires innovation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The excitement continued through to my meeting with one of the very few female Distinguished Engineers, Nancy Greco. This emphatic leader displayed such an infectious enthusiasm and fervour for her work that I couldn’t help but sit there sparkly eyed, staring at her in awe the entire meeting. Every time I think back to this meeting, it simply makes me smile. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My deep-dive into Research concluded with a demo of IBM’s very own Artificial Intelligence computer, <a href="http://www-03.ibm.com/innovation/us/watson/">Watson</a>. Watson made headlines when this super computer competed on Jeopardy with reigning champions and WON! I had the opportunity to see Watson in action first-hand as it was demo’ed on its future potential in the Health Care sector. Can’t wait to see the impact this has once it's commercialised!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Left) Me and the immaculate Sarah Diamond, General Manager Global Business Services; (Middle) Super researcher Lynne Gignac and myself; (Right) IBM Headquarters and Watson Research Centre</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 11 </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today started off with a meeting with Stanley Litow, Vice President, Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs and President, IBM International Foundation. Stan is nothing short of a genius when it comes to combining philanthropy and corporate leadership, and has been instrumental in IBM being regarded as a leader in Corporate Citizenship. Stan was fantastic about sharing his insights on how I can become more involved in corporate citizenship and left me more enthused than ever to do so upon my return.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the meeting I headed off to join Bridget at the <a href="http://www.bottomlessclosetnyc.org/">Bottomless Closet</a> Annual Luncheon where she was being honoured. The mission of Bottomless Closet is to help disadvantaged New York City women become self-sufficient through a comprehensive program that begins with business attire and interview preparation and continues with professional development, financial management and personal enrichment. I loved the concept of what this organization does and the beauty of it is that it is so reproducible. Starting with something as simple as providing suitable business attire to underprivileged women, is something that we can easily do back home and I’ve already started brainstorming around ways which I can make this work! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The day ended off with a dinner hosted by Fortune’s Most Powerful Women where we were not only treated to an opportunity to dress up for eve of glitzy celebrations, but more importantly another wonderful networking opportunity to meet our fellow mentees’ mentors and a range of other wonderful guests. We had the pleasure of being addressed by the influential Christiane Amapour of CNN and the simply delightful, no-bull Chris Quinn, the first openly gay Speaker of the New York City Council and next mayoral candidate. I also had the pleasure of sitting next to Rebecca Shapiro from the Huffington Post who made for great company. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 12</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With yesterday being the “official” end to the IBM program, the next 2 days were dedicated to the Vital Voices closing program, but I unfortunately had to miss the first morning session. Why? Because IBM had something very different in store for me- a meeting with IBM CEO and Fortune’s MOST Powerful Woman in Business, the awe-inspiring <a href="http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/most-powerful-women/2012/snapshots/1.html">Ginni Rometty</a>!! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was simply beside myself when I found out this meeting was scheduled in my program. After spending 2 weeks engaging with IBM’ers in various fields, of various backgrounds and in various positions within the company, one message was clear - they all respected and admired their CEO. When she walked into the room, I immediately saw why! Her presence was immediately felt, but together with the deep-seated power, she displayed an immense warmth that was encapsulated in her smile. She engaged in conversation with me in the most genuine and sincere way. There I was, just an average Jane sitting in the presence of this revered leader and yet she was wanted to hear my opinions. It was amazing. The conversation was most inspiring and I gained so much in the little time I spent with her. I can only hope that I can emulate her leadership as I move forward on my own journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Me with IBM CEO and Fortune's MOST Powerful Woman in Business, Ginni Rometty </span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the rest of the day I joined my fellow mentees as we shared our amazing experiences with each other from our Mentorship assignments. But the Vital Voices team didn’t stop there. There was plenty of inspiration still lined up for us. I joined in on lunch hosted by the amazing Dina Powell and a panel of equally amazing senior female leaders at Goldman Sachs. It was wonderful to be able to engage with these women and have them give us invaluable advice in building our own stories. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The inspiration continued as we moved on to Ann.Inc where we met Aniela Unguresan, Co-Founder of the Gender Equality Project, a Swiss non-profit organisation working with large organisations around the world to close the gap in opportunities between men and women in the workplace. It was a great insight to see how gender equality is being addressed around the world and definitely some food for thought going back to our own home countries. <span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 13</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The official final day of the program started off at the beautiful home of the super impressive Geraldine Laybourne, who revolutionised kids’ education through Nickelodeon and founder of Oxygen Media. We were also fortunate that her bosom buddy, Donna Orender past president of the WNBA, joined us too. Gerri’s story was simply phenomenal, and watching her and Donna interact and call on each other as they shared their stories was simply magical. So much energy and so much to learn from the special relationship that these two have!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We then headed off to Fenton media where we had a fantastic panel discussion with leading business women, the vibrant Susan McPherson, Senior Vice President Fenton Media and extraordinary Beth Brooke, Global Vice Chair for Public Policy Ernst & Young. The session was moderated by the wonderful Alyse Nelson, who we had all so grown to love since meeting her on Day 1 of the program. The discussion was powerful with both Susan and Beth sharing their most challenging experiences and the power of helping other’s succeed. It was an enlightening discussion and I certainly gained a lot of value from. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Left) Super-woman Dina Powell, President Goldman Sachs Foundation; (Middle); Powerful discussions with Susan McPherson, Senior Vice President Fenton Media and the extraordinary Beth Brooke, Global Vice Chair E&Y moderated by Alyse Nelson, CEO Vital Voices; (Right) Welcomed into the home of Gerri Laybourne, Founder Oxygen Media and co-hosted by the wonderful Donna Orender, past WNBA President</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The final session of the official program focused on Communications and Media Training. Now that all of us had this incredible experience, how do we go forward and share our stories. How do we share the learnings and powerful insights gained from this remarkable program? Hopefully the fact that I started my blog means that I’m making progress :) We also touched on some awesome advice for on-camera interviews and had a go at doing some mock interviews. What a great learning experience!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The program officially closed with a divine dinner party at the plush Upper Eastside Penthouse of Alice Kandell, President, International Opera Alliance. The grand finale was nothing short of GRAND with all of us being totally surprised by the out-of-this-world Opera Flash Mob that she had organised for us. It was certainly and experience of a life-time and we couldn’t have hope for a more magnificent send-off! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 14</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So yesterday was supposed to mark the official end of the program, but much to my surprise and excitement, when it became known that I would be spending 2 additional days on New York post the program, IBM were keen to set up some more amazing meetings for me! I couldn’t have been more ecstatic at the opportunity as the next 2 meetings would turn out to be part of the most incredible highlights of my experience!! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first was a session planned with Mark Harris, Vice President of Communications. This was a unique opportunity to be coached by the brilliant man behind both the current and past IBM’s CEO’s speeches, and also their media training coach! This was simply a mind-blowing session which gave me so much insight into my own delivery styles and thoughts on how I go about presenting myself as I move forward. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The session also included a daunting on-camera session (which was a great follow-on from yesterday’s session!). Analysing yourself on camera is one of the most difficult things to do, yet one of the greatest learning experiences. Mark was such a natural and really had a special way of bringing out the best in me. I am so excited to have such a talented coach in my newly formed network and look so forward to working with him in the future. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 15 </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For my final day, what more could I have asked for than being hosted by Joseph Tama, the MD of the Global Corporate Client Group at the New York Stock Exchange! Our morning started off with the surreal experience of being on the floor to watch the ringing of the bell that signified the opening of the NYSE. It was also great timing as today hosted the IPO (Initial Public Offerings) of the software company Tableau.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This meant that I had a first-hand experience of how the stock price was negotiated and auctioned before the company went public. What a rush!! Joe was a wonderful host and gave me a great overview of the NYSE from its history, through its transformations and on how it goes about running on a day to day basis. This was no doubt the perfect way to close my program and left me completely awed regarding the potential that now lied ahead! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My mind-blowing visit to Wall Street</span></i></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I said in the beginning, never in my wildest dreams, could I have conjured up a program as extraordinary as this. The IBM team went far and beyond the call of duty to make my experience one of such fantastic value and for that I am beyond grateful!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I know that was quite a read, but for those of you who stayed the course, I hope you enjoyed getting an insight into my experience as much as I enjoyed sharing it. Believe it or not, this is still somewhat of a summarised version, as there was just so much more that took place in between it all, but alas, maybe we have to wait for the book to be written so that I have enough space to write it all :)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you can imagine, there was much learning and growth from all this fantastic exposure that I was fortunate to have during my program. I will be writing more about that in my next post so do watch this space!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-57616709675545160362013-04-30T03:21:00.000+02:002013-05-28T19:46:37.803+02:00A week of inspiration and invaluable learnings!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Date:Saturday, 27 April 2013</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Place: Started in Washington, bulk up in the air, finishing touches in New York :)</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">This morning marks the end of the incredible orientation week of the Fortune/U.S. State Department Global Mentorship program!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">The week was spent engaging with prominent leaders from the U.S. State Department; determined and passionate business and social entrepreneurs; inspirational CEOs, Directors, Presidents and Chairpersons of a multitude of amazingly successful companies, organisations,initiatives and institutes; various charismatic media and communication specialists; and the incredibly dedicated Vital Voices team - all working towards the common goal of empowering women and encouraging positive change for women around the world. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Then there was, of course, the amazing dining- lunch at Nora's (an incredible entrepreneur herself), getting a feel of downtown Washington at Zentan, and being welcomed into the beautiful home and being graciously hosted by the CEO of Vital Voices herself, <a href="http://www.vitalvoices.org/node/180">Alyse Nelson</a>. And then, without a doubt, the highlight event of the week: The Fortune's Most Powerful Women's Dinner hosted in the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Room at the U.S. State Department and attended by an incredible array of special guests.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Fortune journalist Nina Easton interviews <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Mikulski">Senator Barbara Mikulski</a>, the longest serving woman in U.S. Congress (Left); Passionate and charismatic Vital Voices Chair <a href="http://www.vitalvoices.org/node/180">Susan Davis</a> being interviewed by Bloomberg corespondent Indira Lakshmanan (Right)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">But yes, as mind-blowing as all that sounds,this week was just so much more than the glitz, glamour and big names. It was about incredible women leaders, taking time out of their jam-packed diaries,stepping out of their fancy corner offices and high-powered boardrooms to engage with us - a group of 27 ordinary individuals from around the world,wanting to make a difference. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">And yes, I specifically use the word"engage" because that's what it was! It wasn't just about these phenomenal women standing up behind a podium and presenting their message to us. Rather it was us, together, talking about stories that resonate with each other, participating in interactive conversations, open and honest Q&A sessions, and these amazing women simply making themselves accessible in a way that made us feel like peers, friends sharing experiences over a good cup of coffee. I, personally, was taken aback by their humility, generosity,authenticity and passion, but mostly by their openness and enthusiasm to learn from us! </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Engaging with the State Department Leadership panel: Assistant Secretary of State, <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/145328.htm">Ann Stock</a>; Chief Economist, <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/189744.htm">Heidi Credo-Rediker</a>; and Counsellor to Secretary Kerry, <a href="http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/205803.htm">Heather Higginbottom</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Conversations ranged from how each of horsewomen became the success stories that they are; to the challenges they faced and sacrifices that were made; to the role of determination, passion and resilience not to stray from the course; just to having the self-belief to know that you can. The stories were all so different, yet all the same. There was certainly a golden thread that ran through every story - it was the message that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Anythingis</i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Possible</b></i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Another integral commonality that every single woman not only spoke about, but showed she had made it a way of life,was the message of Paying It Forward! No matter how successful you become, how busy your schedule is, how powerful your story is, it only becomes real and meaningful when you commit to helping others succeed. For me this really stood out, mostly because one of the main enemies to success that repeatedly come up when speaking to women about the challenges they face is not that men aren't ready for it, or that their families hold them back, but rather the epidemic of "PHD (Pull Her Down) syndrome" where women are the main barrier to having other women succeed. So it was incredible to hear these women preaching the exact opposite and encouraging the success of their peers and mentees! After all, it was the great Madeleine Albright who said"<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">There's a special place in hell for women who don't help other women</i>." :) </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Panel Discussion with Inspiring Leaders: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathleen_Matthews">Kathleen Matthews</a>, Executive VP Marriot Int.; <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susan_Molinari">Susan Molinari</a>, VP Public Policy Google; <a href="http://explore.georgetown.edu/people/lancastc/">Dr Carol Lancaster</a>, Dean Georgetown University; chaired by Alyse Nelson, CEO Vital Voices</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">But beyond all this, one of the most inspiring moments was sitting at lunch with 2 incredibly powerful and successful women and listening to them talk about their everyday happenings like their relationships woes and planning their next holiday. It just makes you realise that despite the titles, fame and extraordinary stories, they are just like you and I, which then in turn instills the belief that you and I can be just like them! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">Over and above the inspirational sessions spent with these phenomenal women, time was also dedicated to workshops focusing on our own circumstances, leadership enhancement and grooming as we go forward creating our own success stories. There was a powerful sense of affirmation in not having people look at you strangely or cynically when you say you want to change the world, that you want to leave a legacy of positive change! It really was a space where I felt that I was given an opportunity and a platform to make sweeping statements about the incredible feats I hope to achieve and not only have others believe it's possible, but more so to really believe in myself and what I am capable of. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">I learnt that one of my biggest strengths,and indeed my driving force, is the ability to introduce people to their Amazing self! I am committed to going forward and through my work, my life and my everyday doings, bring out the best in people, and go on to leave a legacy as someone who made Paying It Forward fashionable. :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: small;">So after a powerful and inspiring first week,already with so much growth and personal enhancement, I feel better equipped and more ready than ever to continue my learning as I head to New York to begin my mentorship program! </span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-38422423052479392782013-04-24T14:09:00.001+02:002013-04-24T22:44:13.786+02:00An Opportunity of a Lifetime<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Date: Tuesday, 23 April 2013</i></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Time: 06:15 EST (12:15 SAST)</i></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Place: Still in bed, listening to the sounds of DC waking up</i></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So once again, I'm sitting here, wide awake in bed during the early hours of the morning. But today it's not because of jet lag. Today it's out of the sheer excitement and anticipation of what lies ahead in the coming hours.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From my last few posts, you already know that I'm currently in Washington. I also mentioned that I'm here in the US for four weeks as part of an incredible program that I've been selected for. Well, it's this very program and the potential that it holds, that is the cause of my excitement and the reason that I'm up blogging right now instead of indulging in my tenth dream.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I returned to South Africa in December 2012, after living in Germany for just under two years, I was absolutely thrilled to be appointed as MD of SAWomEng. Anyone who knows me, knows what a significant part of my life the organisation occupies. And in my new role, I wanted to make sure that I could deliver on providing sound but innovative leadership and really take the organisation to the next level of functional, operational and strategic excellence. As such I decided that this would be the year to invest in my personal leadership development and equip myself with the adequate skills set to help me in my agenda. Little did I know that an opportunity would come along so soon, and let alone one of this magnitude.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Towards the end of March I received a call saying that I have been selected to participate in the Fortune 500/U.S. State Department Global Mentorship Exchange Program! The program brings together about 25 high-potential woman leaders from around the world, between the ages of 25 - 45, and partners them with a senior female executive from a Fortune 500 company for a month long internship in the US, focussing on mentorship, leadership skills development and social responsibility.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As if it wasn't hard enough to contain the enormous wave of excitement that I was engulfed by, I was further notified that I was to be partnered with... *takes a deep breath and does a quick reality check to make sure I'm not dreaming*... the Senior Vice President Global Business, IBM - Bridget van Kralingen (Yes, I will certainly be writing more about this incredible woman and IBM soon). It took me a good few days to really digest the information and what was actually happening.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fast forward to a month later, and as I sit here now, halfway across the world from home, in my hotel room in Washington, D.C., it all still feels so surreal! This is indeed, an opportunity of a lifetime and one that I am so incredibly honoured and humbled to have bestowed upon me.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In a few hours time the program officially commences. I will get the opportunity to meet the other mentees and we will spend a week in Washington on an orientation program hosted by the program's facilitating company Vital Voices, before we each depart for individual mentorship assignments across the US - being partnered with IBM, I will be based in... *wait for it* ... New York City!!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now as you may have gathered from my writing so far, I am beyond excited to be a part of this esteemed program. But more than that, I am also fully aware of the level of responsibility and social obligation that comes with embarking on a program of this calibre. For me, my objectives from the program are not just limited to my personal leadership enhancement and business skills-set building, but more so, sharing my learnings and really living the message of Paying it Forward.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am incredibly fortunate to be able the have the exposure and learnings that I will be obtaining as I engage with a number of amazing leaders, business women and social entrepreneurs in the coming weeks. But it would be selfish to just keep this information and use it only for self enhancement. So as I go forward on this program there are a few things I commit to doing:</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1) Go in with a beginner's mind and thirst for knowledge and growth so I can really maximise the learnings to its full extent</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2) Remain humble, but at the same time exude with the right amount of confidence and poise to be able to build a reputation as an emerging leader with potential to make a difference and leave a legacy of positive change</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3) Share my learnings and enable the knowledge and skills transfer to have as greater reach as possible. I currently foresee myself doing this by bringing my experiences back home to South Africa to first make an impact in a local context - by making myself available to mentor future leaders, by training and enabling the SAWomEng teams to become leaders in their own right and simply by writing about my experiences and sharing them with whoever may be interested. If even a simple interest is sparked, which results in a positive chain reaction of any sorts, then that is already progress.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm sure as I embark on this incredible adventure, so much more will come through. So I look forward to sharing this journey with you and have you be a part of my own growth and development as I strive to establish myself as The Passionate Change-Maker!</span></div></div>The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-9538590505235189602013-04-22T15:43:00.000+02:002013-05-26T23:38:59.562+02:00My Travel Methodology<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Place: Wide awake in bed, feeling the effects of jet-lag</span></i></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes yes, just by the name I'm sure you can tell this is the blog coming from The Passionate (OCD) Planner ;) </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So as I sit here in bed at about 4 am dealing with the effects of jet lag, I was sorting out my plans for my 2 free days in DC. It was then that I realised that, even though I haven't put it on paper before, I have a pretty set travel methodology, a list of objectives so to speak, that I usually follow when visiting a city. I thought that it would be fun to share this. So here goes (in no particular order)...</span></span></div>
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<b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1) The traditional tourist approach</span></i></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So first is the obvious high-level, quick run-down of the city - learning about how/why/when things got to be the way that there are. This is often best done in the obvious, traditional touristy way - walking tours, bike tours or that famous red hop on/hop off bus.Yes, this typically takes you to all the hustle-bustle, crowded places, but I must admit, I like that. I love being where the action is (although not so much the queues that are a horrid consequence of this). So yes, pretty stock-standard but for me this still beats reading Fodor's or Lonely Planet and self-navigating through the hot-spots (probably because I have little to no sense of bearing and directions)</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">2) Off the beaten path</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having said all I did in no. 1, an absolute must for me once that is done, is to also go exploring off the beating path. I love walking around a city, with no agenda or planned route, and simply seeing what exists beyond the touristy hubs. It's often a great contrast from what you see from the traditional tours, and this is exactly why I like to to both - to be able to get a full appreciation of the different aspects of a city. </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love finding a local hangout - especially the corner cafe types. Now most of my recent travels have been done solo. As recent as about 3 years ago, the social butterfly in me was absolutely mortified at the thought of sitting ALONE in a restaurant and having a meal by myself. During my first few solo trips, I would rather opt for grabbing a quick bite on the go, or taking some take-aways back to my hotel. Then on one trip, I saw this absolutely beautiful coffee shop that I simply had to try, so after a short internal battle with myself, I decided to just take the plunge and sit down alone. Yes, it was rather uncomfortable but by no means unbearable. So I started doing this more and more often. And now it's become an absolute must!!! No doubt, having company is great, but I realised that when you're with someone else, you're more focused in engaging with each other, as opposed to your environment. When sitting alone you can actually observe your surroundings, the people, the food, even the waiters etc. and it really does give you a different experience beyond just the norm. This is, coincidentally, how my hobby of people-watching also came about :) </span></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">4) Make friends with a local</i></b></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is one of my favourites! There's is no better way to get an impression of a new city than through the eyes of a local. There are numerous ways to do this (point no. 3 above is definitely one of them) - speak to a shop keeper at a local store, make friends with a local tour guide (not the foreign ones who just learn the notes about the city off by heart), take a walk through the local park or sit next to a local at the bus stop and make conversation. However you do it, it's always so enriching for me to see how people of different cultures engage with strangers, how the locals see their own city and hey, sometimes the friendship can extend beyond just that conversation and there you go building a network of international friends :)</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">5) Travel on local transport</i></b></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love cities that have public transport - trains, trams, buses - I love trying them all. Also, it can definitely assist with the point above ;) From bracing the traffic in a tuk-tuk in India, to the perfectly timed trains in Germany, to rush hour on the tube in London, it's just such a fantastic way to do it the way the locals do it!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">6) Visit the local supermarket</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is an absolute must for me. I can spend hours in the local supermarket and/or even the local health & beauty outlet (like those in the Clicks/Boots category). These kind of stores are often overlooked or just used to get some necessities that you may have forgotten. But if you really take some time and venture through the isles, it's incredible what you can find. Everything from the type of snacks that the locals eat, to the popular brands that they use, to the price ranges of similar products, etc - this teaches you more than just meets the eye. It gives you an insight into marketing strategies, economic standing of the country, standard of living, it shows you how different cultures prioritise different things. I find it fascinating!</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">7) City by night</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Going back to the traditional tours in point no. 1 - I also love doing the night-tours. Especially in historical cities sprawled with monuments, memorials, castles and bridges. A city really does transform at night and the way you experience it during the day and night can often be a completely different adventure altogether.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">8) Getting onto the water</i></b></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having done most of my recent travels in Europe, a common feature in almost every major city is having a body of water run through it - be it the Thames in London, the Danube in Budapest, the Vistula in Poland or the endless canals in Amsterdam. Whenever there is a river flowing through a city, I absolutely must do a river cruise/boat ride of sorts. I simply love being on the water and it also makes for great viewing of the beautiful city sights that often line the banks of the river. Depending on the set-up of the city of course, but this often makes for a great night tour to view the illuminated city skyline.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">9) Find a local market</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be it a food market, an antique market or even a flea market, this is usually fun! I must admit the farmer's market or any food markets are my favourites, as these are often the best place to sample the local delicacies. I think markets are pretty universal, as I think every city that I've visited has had one of sorts. It's a completely different experience than just popping into a shopping mall or restaurant. Everything from bargaining in India, to auctioning fish at the Hamburg Fish Market, to getting stuffed on tasters at the fresh food market in Versailles... The idea of markets go back centuries and centuries, and is still a thriving concept in this day and age - enough said! </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">10) Visit for a reason that makes that city famous</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I mentioned at the beginning, I love the hustle-bustle and being where the action is. So for me, when possible, I plan my trips around various famous festivals/events! Munich for Oktoberfest; Scotland for the Edinburgh Festival; Cologne for Karnival; Pamplona for St. Fermin; Amsterdam for Queen's Day - the list is long and exciting, and I've got ample to still tick off! But having said that, even if the trip isn't specially planned for a specific festival/event, it's worthwhile to check what's happening in that city during the time you've already booked for. I inadvertently managed to catch a popular International Open-air Film Festival and Food Fair in Vienna, and that ended up being the highlight of my trip. So ever since then, I've made an active effort to suss this out! </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And just because I thinks lists don't have to necessarily stop at point 10...</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">11) Sample the local delicacies</i></b></span></div>
</div>
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<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; text-align: start;">
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is already built into points no. 3, 6 and 9, as each of them present an opportunity to do just this, but I thought it deserved a point on its own. When I tell people that I'm vegetarian, I'm often met with the response "Oh shame!". I still don't get that! Being vegetarian doesn't stop me, in the least bit, from being an absolute foodie and from finding the various local veggie delights that every new city has to offer. After all, some of the best delicacies are vegetarian - deep fried bananas smothered in Nutella, Swiss cheese fondue, French toast with honeyed strawberries, fresh hand-made pasta in a creamy mushroom sauce... I could could go on, but now I'm getting terribly hungry!! </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But yes, over and above everything else, when visiting a new city my main rule is to go in with an open mind, no expectation and a readiness to explore!! </span></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So there you have it... Now let me get back to seeing how much of this I can squeeze into my next 2 days in DC :))</span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-91614372787442877632013-04-20T16:11:00.001+02:002013-04-22T15:44:59.328+02:00The Passionate Traveller<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Date: Saturday,
20 April 2013<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Time: 09:00
EST (15:00 SAST)<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: right;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Place: My
hotel business centre, Washington D.C.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">It's
rather apt that I started my blog and wrote my first post 33000 ft up in the air. Travel excites me to
no end! I'm absolutely enthralled by the endless possibility and riveting
adventure that I often say is synonymous with travel. Now I know some will
argue and say that travel isn't always about exciting expeditions and glamorous
gallivanting. Especially when, for example, it's always for work. And yes, to
some the thought of leading such a nomadic life can be a bit unsettling. I
certainly see where these folk are coming from and perhaps the day may come
when I will share in those beliefs. But fortunately today is not that day! For
now, I will jump at any opportunity to hop on a plane and venture into new
lands, and old :) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This
morning I landed in Washington, D.C. My first (and only) trip to the U.S. was
back in 1996 when we visited Disneyland on a family holiday. As you can
imagine, that was a child's dream come true! That was in fact, also my first
trip overseas. It was back then already that the travel bug started to visit.
There was something about this thing called travel that captured the
imagination of this curios teenager. Subsequent to that trip, I was
fortunate enough to have travelled fairly extensively - initially mostly on
family holidays to the U.K., Mauritius, Malaysia, Singapore, India and then in
more recent years for work to South Korea, The Netherlands and an incredible
opportunity to live in Germany for just under 2 years! Now it was during these
past 2 years that the travel bug not only became a more frequent visitor, but
happily sunk down an anchor and decided to make itself at home. During my time
in Germany, I pretty much conquered Europe. Well, to as far as my Schengen Visa
would allow at least! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Initially
the travels were just for fun, for keeping myself busy over the weekends. But
then something happened, trip after trip I started seeing a change in me (yes
over and above the extra pounds I was putting on as a result of the foodie in
me indulging in my adventures). I realised how I started seeing the world
through different eyes, how I had become more confident in my ability to
navigate through unknown lands (both literally and figuratively) and just how
much I was learning about everything from people, food, culture, history,
economics, and simply the ways of the world. This is the type of knowledge that
one can merely not, as powerful as they are, receive from books or television
or word of mouth. I returned home a changed person, one with a different
purpose in life and an even deeper curiosity to continue to explore the
enormous world of untapped possibility that lies out there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So you can
imagine just how over-the-moon I was when, only 3 months after I returned, I
found out that I was selected to be part of an incredible program (which I will
most definitely be blogging more about this in the coming weeks) that would
take me to the U.S. for 4 weeks! And this is how I ended up in Washington this
morning :) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I
fortunately have 2 and a bit days free before the program officially starts so
I am looking so forward venturing out and exploring the city. Any hints, tips,
must-do's are most welcome! I can't wait to share in my adventures, so since I
can’t check in for another 6 hours, let me sign off here and get started...
:)) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6213267762912348758.post-25833240088948162582013-04-20T15:35:00.000+02:002013-04-22T15:44:47.498+02:00Getting started... <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Date: Friday, 19 April 2013<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Time: 20:00
SAST<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="right" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: right;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Place:
Up in the sky, somewhere over Africa<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So here I
am, sitting snugly on the plane (fortunately with an open seat next to me),
wrapped in my blanket and iPad in hand. With an 18 hour journey ahead of me, I
decided what better time than now to finally take the plunge... And officially
start my blog! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Those who
know me, know just how much of a talker I am. By starting this blog, I'm
venturing into the new, unknown world of... *gulp* ... Writing! I'll admit
upfront, this is rather daunting territory for me. Despite having a multitude
of thoughts running through my hyperactive mind at any given time and churning
them out through my mouth at super-sonic speeds, I find it incredibly difficult
to articulate my thoughts on paper. But as someone with a thirst for knowledge,
an eternal desire for growth (no, not in a physically lateral way!), and
simply, as someone who wants to share the incredible adventures and
opportunities I have been fortunate enough to have bestowed upon me,
I decided to embrace the challenge and explore the possibilities of
sharing through a new medium of communication. So yup, here we go!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><b><i>What’s in
a name?...</i></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So let’s
start with the name of the blog... The Passionate Professional. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Passion is
defined as "an intense enthusiasm for something". Well, as
someone who is enthusiastic about just about almost everything I choose to
engage in, passion is certainly a central theme in my life. I honestly believe
that a life lived with passion, is a life of fulfillment, a life of happiness
:)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> Now
there are many things that I'm passionate about, and as I blog you <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"> will
fast get an insight into where my passions lie... sometimes it will be
around pertinent issues impacting our day-to-day lives, probably a lot about
people development, women empowerment and leadership growth, at other times it
may be on the lighter side talking about my passion for food and most
definitely travel, or the simple and silly things that make me smile. But
irrespective of the topic, I'm most passionate about sharing my thoughts, ideas
and learnings with the purpose of engaging the mind and imagination of my
audience in way that can add value to their lives. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">With
regards to the professional part... Well, in the literal sense of the word, I'm
a chemical engineer by profession. I do, however, believe that being a
"professional" goes far beyond a piece of paper with a qualification
scribbled on it. Experience is the most powerful educator and that coupled with
the passion I spoke so, well, passionately about makes for my favourite kind of
professionals :) So I definitely will expose you to my professional self beyond
just the engineer - in my adventures you'll encounter Hema the professional
foodie, the professional change-maker, the professional napper, certainly the
professional traveller and adventurer... And when you don't see a blog for a
while, the professional procrastinator :) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So be it
what it may, I couldn't think of a name more fitting than The Passionate
Professional <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><b><i>Welcome to
my journey...<o:p></o:p></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Now as I
go forward, I welcome you to join in my journey and invite you to be a part of
my adventures. I do, however, add the disclaimer that these are merely MY
opinions developed from the glasses through which I see the world. You may
agree or disagree, relate or disconnect, be bewildered or disinterested -
whatever it may be that's absolutely okay. I am going in with an open mind, and
invite you to do the same. Having said that, I do welcome feedback and am
always open to learning, so please feel free to share any thoughts or comments
triggered by my writings. I look forward to exploring these thoughts and
emotions that are sparked... <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Here
we go... <o:p></o:p></span></i></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">So there
you have it, with all that down, I'd like to officially inaugurate The
Passionate Professional! :)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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The Passionate Professionalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04369029115702931575noreply@blogger.com3