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101: Using resources creatively

January 6, 2013 by Brenda Leave a Comment

The ‘wisdom of the elders’ has a huge impact on our lives and we need to recognise and honour the gifts that are passed down through generations.  There is often ‘tacit knowledge’, information or ‘know how’ that cannot easily be articulated.  It is absorbed through interaction within positive relationships.

December 25 2012, Mavis on her 91st birthday with partner Norris.

December 25 2012, Mavis on her 91st birthday with partner Norris.

Let me give you an example:

My mother’s family had little money but an abundance of love.  She grew up being unaccustomed to wearing shoes as it wasn’t necessary on the farm – and her parents couldn’t easily afford shoes for the children.  They went to school by horse-and-trap and if it rained too hard, they couldn’t cross the drifts, so had to stay at home.  That generation also weathered ‘the great depression’ and ‘the war years’ so they were accustomed to ‘doing without’.  They saved and made use of what they had.  And this influenced their lives enormously and continues to do so.  In addition, fostering positive attitudes enabled them to be creative and meet the challenges. 

Let’s skip to the next generation:  When I was a child my mother owned and ran a ‘tea-room’ and sold fruit and vegetables.  The leftover fruit was carefully combined and cut into fruit salad which was sold to shoppers later in the day.  The parts of vegetables that couldn’t be sold were put into the huge soup cauldron, combined with meat bones and became delicious, nutritious soup.  On cold, dark winter mornings, my mother opened the shop at 6am and workers on their way to the 3 local factories brought in their empty ‘jam tins’ which she filled with her hot soup, charging them only a pittance.  

Even now that she is 91 years of age, she constantly inspires me with her ingenuity and positive attitude.  This year she gave beautifully wrapped Christmas gifts and from a distance I marvelled at how much effort she had gone to.  But, when I came closer, I was even more surprised. 

blog101a

Have a careful look:  she has used the slightly shiny advertising pages from the newspaper for wrapping.  You’ll see the picture of ‘Koo’ brand peaches, cooking oil and dried beans.  The ‘ribbon’ was ‘danger tape’ which had served its purpose on the pavement and had been left lying in the gutter.  Of course she washed it and went to the trouble of making a range of different beautiful bows.  (When I complimented her she responded ‘and it was such fun!’)

Below is an example of another bow:

blog101b

Now in this current era, for many there is an ‘overabundance’ of material items.  Through habit, some have become unnecessarily extravagant and wasteful. Complacency often destroys our ability to recognise, value and use our potential resources in the best possible way.  So, we need to make a conscious effort to deal with all our resources more effectively. 

From the story above there are many lessons to be learned.  And these are significant in our personal, business, professional, organisational and community lives.  Let’s reflect on a few questions: 

  • How can we use our resources more wisely? 
  • How can we be more creative in looking for new ways of using ‘old things’?
  • In which ways can we be less wasteful and less extravagant?
  • And how can we tap into ‘the wisdom of the elders’ in more deliberate and constructive ways? 

For more information on our ‘executive coaching or ‘leadership development’ please contact Brenda on +27 82 4993311 or +27 33 3425432 – email brenda@146.66.90.172 or www.strategy-leadership.com

‘Lessons from the tree’

October 26, 2011 by Brenda Leave a Comment

These notes are from my Communication Skills Training on giving instructions, how to delegate effectively and how to be assertive.

When giving instructions, where possible:

  • Understand the task from as many perspectives as possible.  If you don’t, you are not going to be able to explain it effectively to the person whom you are instructing, particularly where the task is complex.  The ripple effect could be enormous.
  • At the beginning, convey the purpose of the exercise and tell the person what you are going to ask them to do. In other words, it helps to give them the full scope and sequential information.
  • Deliver the message in the most appropriate way for that task and that person.
  • Let the other person know what the time frames are e.g. ‘you have 5 minutes in which to complete this exercise’.
  • Minimise intervals between instructing the person and letting them start that aspect of the task.
  • Observe what the other person is doing, monitor progress and take action on deviations.
  • Be clear in what you are asking them to do.  Don’t assume.  For example, if you are giving a list of instructions, tell them whether they should just be writing down the instructions or actually drawing the picture.
  • Give the person an opportunity to ask questions and answer them in the right amount of detail.  Get people to reconfirm that they understand the instructions.
  • Be aware of noise and other barriers and avoid – for example, standing too near others who are talking can distract.  Speak at the right level for that person.
  • Take into account what tools the person has and modify the instructions accordingly.  For example, it’s pointless telling the person there is blue sky and green grass if the person has only a black pen!
  • Consider your knowledge of that person and their capabilities. Adapt your instructions accordingly. (It’s easier where you know the person, have a relationship and trust them.)
  • Avoid an unnatural environment – for some, not being able to face the person or not having eye contact tempted them to cheat because they found it unnatural.
  • Use eye-contact and other observation (e.g. body language) to assist in obtaining feedback.
  • Sometimes, the position of the person makes a difference.  In this exercise, because they were ‘back-to-back’, in some cases, the person instructing  transposed ‘left’ or ‘right’ for the person where this wasn’t necessary.
  • Past knowledge some-times interferes – for example, some people may have had previous exposure to a different type of ‘three-runged-swing’ and presumed, without hearing any further details, that the one they were to draw was identical to their past experience.

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