10 years + 10 things I am always saying at work!

In continuation of our 10 years of #makingagedcarebetter celebration, from Tania Crivellenti, Facilities & Community Manager, and our resident Swiss-army knife has reflected on the top 10 things she hears herself saying all of the time!

What do you constantly hear yourself saying . . . to family, kids, friends, colleagues or the dog?

1. Fluffy language generates fluffy results

As a detailed oriented person, I’m constantly transforming fluffy language into actionable items.

“I can meet sometime this week” becomes a specific calendar appointment, where I’ve checked all the participants availability according to their calendar, with a location to meet and an agenda.

In our professional life, fluffiness is not a good outcome. “I want to increase sales” is meaningless. “I want to increase sales in this specific product line by 25% by the end of the Financial Year” will generate real action points and a plan.

2. Data coming out is as good as data being put in

Now, back to the calendar appointment. If one of the participants didn’t input their leave in the calendar, the meeting is compromised.

In my experience, what people often forget is that most tech systems depend entirely of people and what they feed into it. If a software is given poor data, poor results are foreseeable! As a people + technology business and where people always comes first this is important for all of us to remember.

3. Avoid soup letters

Acronyms are great, as long as you either know what they mean or, you googled the right meaning.

Remember to always mention the complete words the first time you use an Acronym, most importantly in official documents and in large meetings. Assume one reader or participant might not know what they mean in that specific industry.

4. Words can be like nails

Some words can pierce people like a nail pierces wood, you can remove the nail, but the hole remains. So, awareness while communicating is constantly necessary.

5. Tell a lie once and all your truths become questionable

Authenticity is essential. If I want to say something positive to someone, I look for something that is true for me, there is always something. But I never cloak negativity in unnecessary niceness as that would give a false vibe to my notes. 

Having asserted my authenticity, I’m free to give feedback in the kindest and most constructive way I can.

6. No one is really busy, it’s all about priorities

To make someone prioritise your stuff, you need to somehow change your language to present your needs within their values. 

Basically, it is like saying to a child who loves computer games “mathematics can help you know exactly how much power-mana you need to accumulate to defeat the giant gnome.”

The chance of mathematics becoming a higher priority is much greater than just saying “do your math’s homework.” 

7. Serenity prayer

“May I be granted the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

This is often use in addiction management, isn’t it brilliant? That solves many issues at work. You can accept colleagues as they are, situations as they emerge and concentrate your energy in things you can affect. You can mirror it in business models that teaches us how to differentiate what we can influence, transform or what is completely out of our control. 

8. It ain’t just luck

I’m extremely grateful and privileged that so much of my hard work wielded results and for all that I had to start with (education, family, resources, culture, etc.). But many of what I achieved was from the perspiration and courage it took, not free luck. Okay, in truth, I consider myself truly lucky, but that’s not the whole story. 

I never envy anyone because whatever they have that I don’t, mean they needed to do things, or take risks, or invest time in ways I never wanted to. 

9. If you ignore your muse, it will go to someone else

According to Liz Gilbert in the book “Big Magic”, the muse offers an idea to a person, if that person doesn’t create whatever it is, the muse will move on to someone else until the idea has come out.

I believe this, and even saw the principle at work. I wrote an idea for a book about ten (10) years ago and then recently saw the idea implemented via a movie! It was great to see someone had put the idea out, I had lost interest in it but still thought it was great.

In business, trust the muse, when it comes to you with an idea that inspires you, don’t let yourself procrastinate, work on it, bring it to life, or someone else will.

After all…

10 …dreams don’t work unless you do!

In business and in life.

With Tania Crivellenti, Facilities + Community Manager, Mirus Australia + 10 years of #makingagedcarebetter. Video and infographic timeline about what we have been doing the last 10 years here.