I am digging that the Olympics are on !! I’ve loved watching both the Summer and Winter Games since 1972. The thing that is unfortunate, to me, this year is that people on Social Media are raking NBC over the coals because our “instant society” has results before the athlete even completes an event.
On top of that, people are scathing about how the network is slower than we can post, blog or tweet. In doing this, I think they take away the performance of the athletes, the compelling human drama and the visual appeal of watching the event unfold. I never look for the results, and if I happen to see one, I still watch the event with anticipation.
You may say this is naive or old fashioned, but I think it calls to mind an imbalance in life that social media has afforded us. Let me share two quick stories . . .
On Friday, I went to the retirement dinner of my 70 year old Dad. He had worked for the Mid-Ohio Energy Cooperative as the Accountant. His career for the last 22 years was for a small company in a rural town in Ohio. It was spectacular !! They told stories about my Dad and his “Donisms” which brought the room to tears with laughter. When my Dad spoke, he got a bit choked up thanking the company for the ability to earn a good wage with benefits. He pointed to his family and said, “Look how much you have provided for me so that I am blessed to have provided for my family.” Amazing !!
Tonight we had a cookout with four close girls basketball families and their Coach (w/ family) one last time before the girls head to college. We laughed, reminisced and enjoyed our company one last time as a tight knit group. We vowed to meet every Christmas break and summer to make sure we stayed in touch as a group. Phenomenal !!
When it comes to HR, we are tending to be more like the instant world of Social Media versus the picture above called “Holding a Piece of Time.” We rush to immediate action and/or judgement without taking in all aspects of what is involved. We think the “stories” that surround us honestly get in the way of our real jobs.
This week try something new !! Savor the moments around you. Take in everything and see that, more often than not, great things are happening. You can still take in all of the events, enjoy the movement and come to great decisions. In fact, your results will be spectacular. Don’t rush . . . savor !!
Great message Steve. All to often we get caught up in the trappings and noise around our lives, instead of focusing on the actual life! Good message for a good week ahead!
Nicely done Steve, loved reading your great stories. Our family and friends shared some lovely time together this weekend watching the Olympic Cycling Road Races. Great company, great conversation, and some good food and beers with lovely friends is a winning combination. And now I’m trying to savour the moment as I pull together some thoughts for the 2012 #OHSHRM 🙂
See you soon – Doug
Steve, it sounds like your “holding a piece of time” philosophy is very similar to my “moments of significance” philosophy…we are indeed kindred!
Congrats to your dad, by the way! Impressive!
Great message!
Steve,
Your story hits close to home…. The olympics are always a special time and exciting to watch. Having them in different countries and time zones has always created challenges for TV and media. Our “instant” info age we live in now magnifiies the speed of info and it goes to show you…. you can’t please everyone! I remember WLW always prefacing their sports reports in the past olympic games, in case you didn’t want to know the outcome of an event and watch it on TV later in the evening. As our boys Eddie and Tracy say….”It is was it is!”
Fred
Love your comments about how we move too fast in HR and don’t spend enought time watching for what is going right. One part of my organization is going through rough economic times and their talk to themselves is all about what is wrong and how drastic steps must be taken. I fear they are setting up a doom loop. I am sure if they stopped to listen and challenged themselves to find out what is going right they can recover.
I also wish people would not ruin the surprise of the Olympics. I prefer to watch it for myself and get the adrenaline rush when Team USA is close to the finish. One CEO claimed that as long as the productivity isn’t affected then the employees should be able to watch the Olympics. Below is a link to a blog post about being able to keep up with the Olympics at work.
http://www.gnapartners.com/blog/watch-out-hr-the-olympics-are-here-to-stay/
Awesome message. These days, people are so focused on this fast-paced, always connected, always busy lifestyle (including myself!). Sometimes, you need to stop and “smell the roses” as they say. Otherwise, what will you have to remember when you’re older?