The Positive Pathfinder

Really thought that I lost my mojo to write. Ideas for writing a post dried up. It wasn’t so much that I lost my passion to write, but that I was focused on something else. I was immersed in an interview process for the last 6 weeks. Getting this job was all I thought about. Today I can announce that I got a job with the YMCA and start next week. I’ll be working in the HR department and advising on health and safety and HR matters. I’ve always been passionate about health and safety. I’ve had the good fortune to co-chair Joint Health and Safety Committee meetings at CCH and Combined Insurance for 11 years.  I administered workers’ compensation claims at CCH. I graduated from the Occupational Health and Safety Certificate Program at Ryerson University with an “A” average.  I adapted a CCH health and safety book that was written by an American author. I am a certified Joint Health and Safety Committee member.  Rec...

A little spontaneity is good for the soul. Two days ago it was Canada Day 150 (July 1, 2017). I was listening to the radio at around 8:30 a.m. I was reminded that the annual Canada Day Parade would start at 10:00 a.m. and would wind its way around East York and disband near Stan Wadlow Park at 12 noon. This parade has been taking place for 57 years. And I’ve never attended this parade. This year was a special year however – Canada Day 150. What better way to mark the occasion than to attend this parade. And so I up and went. I left at 9:50 a.m. and walked over to near where the parade started. I arrived at 10:15 a.m. During the parade I received a miniature Canadian flag from one of the young marchers.  The parade ended from where I was standing at 10:35 a.m.  I missed half the parade. I walked over to Stan Wadlow Park to check out the Canada Day festivities. It was only 11:00 a.m. and someone confirmed tha...

Ann DeLuca is a Coach.  She came to the Ontario Society of Senior Citizens Organizations (OSSCO) on June 13 th and conducted a workshop called “Getting Clear on What’s Next.”  Everyone (including me) was in transition.  We were invited to come with an open mind and try some new and different exercises (like visualization exercises).  I was reminded that it’s good to be in a relaxed state of mind to help identify possibilities for ourselves.  When we’re stressed we focus on the stress and less on seeing possibilities.   As I mentioned in an earlier post, we can engage in reflective activities to help put us in a relaxed state of mind like yoga, meditation, walking, painting, writing, etc.  I realized that seeking the services of a coach could be an option to pursue. Rakesh Kana tried something different in his job search.  When traditional job search methods weren’t producing the desired result, he and his wife tried something new b...

My contract at the Ontario Society of Senior Citizens Organizations (OSSCO) ends at the end of June. I’ve been connecting the dots and thinking about my next employment gig. I am a Human Resources Professional. I have always had a welcoming demeanour. At Combined Insurance whenever an employee dropped into the HR department, I would drop what I was doing and tend to the employee’s enquiry.  I always wanted an employee to feel that they are the most important person in the world in the moment.  I listened and always made eye contact. When I am talking to two or more people, I shift my gaze from one speaker to the next, so that no person feels excluded. When I facilitated Committee meetings, I made sure that everyone felt they had a voice.  We had an unspoken rule about 1 person holding the floor at any one time and staying on topic.  Most times Committee members felt comfortable to share their perspective.  Occasionally if we didn’t ...

I get to organize free educational meet-ups at the Ontario Society of Senior Citizens Organizations.   T he intended audience are unemployed job seekers who are either 50+ or a newcomer to Canada. T he meet-ups are an opportunity for attendees to come to our office (in Toronto) to network and to learn an idea or two from our invited speakers. Our first meet-up was on February 28, 2017. At the time our way to get the word out about our meet-ups was to pick up the phone and to personally reach out to community agencies. I’d say: “Would you be open to distributing our poster to your network?” I’d follow-up with an e-mail and attach our poster. Some community agencies responded with a non-response. Some community agencies wrote back to say that they distributed our poster to their network. Some community agencies were open to engaging in a phone conversation. Since February 28, we’ve held meet-ups on March 10, April 20 and May 1...

I subscribe to Henrik Edberg’s blog called “ The Positivity Blog .” Today’s blog post was called “One of my absolute favourite ways to handle criticism.” I found that intriguing and I clicked on the e-mail. Henrik chooses to handle criticism by thinking that “everyone has the right to their own opinion.” I don’t like the word “criticism” – you can have “harsh criticism” and you can have “constructive criticism” and they both have a negative connotation to me. Instead of “criticism”, I like the word “perspective.” “Perspective” has a more neutral ring to it. Recently at work I submitted a piece for our company newsletter. My editor wanted to make changes. I looked carefully at each of the changes that were suggested. My editor wanted to change the title of the piece. I thought the title that my editor suggested was better, so let’s go with my editor’s suggestion. My editor wanted to say something that was not in my voice. I sugg...

My friend George Khalife shared an elevator story with his network this week. George stepped into an elevator.  He was listening to music on personal earbuds (or headphones).  A fellow elevator passenger noticed the blazer he was wearing and remarked:  “Love that blazer!, what does the symbol mean?”  George removed his earbuds in anticipation of a conversation and replied:  “Thanks! Not sure to be honest, but it looks cool.” This initial exchange was followed up with an introduction of names, where they work, an exchange of business cards and the possibility for future networking! When I read George’s update on LinkedIn, I had a feeling that I may have experienced my elevator story on or about the same day that George shared his elevator story.  Last Tuesday it was the end of the day and the elevator stopped on the 4 th floor where I work.   I stepped into the elevator.  A gentleman was already in the elevator from an upper ...

I (along with 14 other classmates) took a Mental Health First Aid course on April 22 & 29th. I learned from the course that kindness goes a long way. You notice that someone is in distress. You stop and ask how they are. You listen non-judgementally. You assess if the other person is a risk for suicide or for harming others. You give reassurance.  You advise about seeking appropriate professional help. You provide support. Mental health first aid suggests an approach (modified slightly) that all of us can use in our daily lives.     We can be a little more caring towards each other. Stop and ask how someone is. Listen non-judgementally. Provide support. We can be a little more caring toward ourselves. We have to find some “me” time once in awhile to re-charge. My classmates suggested some things that they do like play with their kids, play a musical instrument, play with a pet, so...

In 2016 I connected with “John” on LinkedIn. You see I’ve never met John. I only know John through the LinkedIn posts that he writes on entrepreneurship. I like John’s conversational style of writing.  His posts are very informative.        I’ve commented and liked John’s posts.   And he’s commented and liked my posts as well.        Recently, at work, I was asked to organize a speakers event. We were looking for two volunteer speakers to come to our office and speak about their experiences in starting up a business. I thought of John. I knew that he would be too busy to volunteer his time, and so I asked him if he knew of anyone who would be willing to volunteer and speak at our event. John referred me to “Michael.” I spoke to Michael on the telephone for 10 minutes. Michael was willing to come to our office and speak. Unfortunately by the tim...

I was having a happy, free-wheeling conversation with a friend last week who had recently retired. Inevitably we started talking about work. He was lucky enough to stay at one employer for his entire career. That is quite an accomplishment! In the context of work, he mentioned that he was a “follower” as opposed to say being a manager. At the time, I weakly said that he was probably a little bit of a follower and a leader rolled up in one. The verb “follow” sounds OK to me. You can follow your passions. You can follow a company on LinkedIn. You can follow your instincts. You can follow instructions. You can follow protocol. But to be a “follower” at work just doesn’t sit well with me. It sounds like blind obedience. I have a “rebellious” streak and like to change things up.  For example if I were to drive to work, I’d park as far away from the entrance as possible just so that I could get some exercise. Or if ...

I had to make cold calls at work recently. I got stressed. You might think that I was stressed thinking about having to make cold calls. But this wasn’t the case at all. I found it easy to make the calls. “Hello, my name is Jamie Soo. I am calling from the Ontario Society of Senior Citizens Organizations.   We are offering a free 2-day workshop on how to start up a business. The workshop is for individuals 50+ who are looking for a job...We have a poster on this event that perhaps you might like to post at your organization…?” My message didn’t resonate with everyone. But sometimes it resonated with someone. I got stressed because I had an expectation that I would be able to attract lots of people to the workshop. A colleague (wisely) commented that what I was doing (cold calling) was valuable. I may not see immediate results, but I was planting a seed for the future. I’ve always had a sense of urgency about me ...

I read an article today called “ How to Connect With An Aging Parent ” by David Maxfield. As I was reading the article, the things that this article talks about applies to connecting with ANYBODY. The article is set up like an advice column. A reader wrote in to say that when her husband talks to his mother about current events, that his mother seems to get very categorical. Mr. Maxfield suggests that the husband change the topic of conversation and make it more personal when he talks to his mother. Mr. Maxfield suggested some ways to make the conversation more “personal.” Inclusivity . Mr. Maxfield suggested that the husband call his mother every day, so that she feels more included in his life. When I was chairing committee meetings at Combined Insurance and I was telling something to the committee, I would make sure that I made eye contact (briefly) with each and every person. I wanted to make sure that they felt included. If I’m at a...

I like being open. I tell people that I don’t have a smartphone. This elicits different reactions. Scenario 1. A friend noticed that I was using a flip phone. He intimated that I was making myself look outdated by using a flip phone. I didn’t enjoy how he said it, but yeah I know that he has a point. Scenario 2. More recently another friend took a more thoughtful approach to my admission. He said he was interested in how I came to my decision to stay smartphone-free. You open up a window of opportunity when you are open and take on a curious stance. People will open up to you, which in turn could lead to a meaningful conversation.           In Scenario 1, I reacted to my friend’s comment by shutting down and wanting to move on to a different subject. The comment felt judgmental to me. In Scenario 2 I was happy to explain my reasons to my friend. I took my friend’s comment ...