I am reading a book right now called "Now, Discover Your Strengths" and the whole premise of the book is to look at what talents and strengths people posses and focus in on them, instead of our weaknesses. The book argues that way to often people ignore their strengths in an attempt to make their weaknesses stronger, and really, it should be the other way around (to a point). Instead of placing energy and money into something that we might only change marginally, we should place that into making our strenghts stronger.


I, 100% prescribe to the idea. Infact, I like it so much that I have done the quick quiz they provide and have been given my top 5 strenghts and now looking for ways to capitalize on my God given talents. Except I have one question: Has anyone seen what modern day work organizations and institutions look like? Maybe it's just me, but I work in an environment that could really care less if you have the talent for empathy, because, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter if you can related to people, but rather, did you get the peoples money?



In a world that is driven by the bottom line and a society that is all about themselves, I ask, how does using my natural talents today, help me tomorrow, especially when I work with a company that doesn't believe in or want to believe in everything that I am reading and that I agree to? It doesn't make sense.



That said, I have decided that there are some things that I am good at and persuing them in my free time at the office wouldn't be a bad idea. First it would give me something to do, and secondly...it would give me something to do. For example, photography and baking. Two great loves of my life. Last weekend I shot a wedding reception in Calgary that went really well, and two days ago I talked to the woman who owns the little coffee shop where I work, and she said that if I wanted to bake for the coffee house, I was free to do so. Baby steps. Visible Progress. Maybe we're on to something here.

Day 13 - An Internal Smile

I would be described as a morning person. I enjoy getting up, getting energized, taking on my day and going to bed around 10. For some, this outlook on life is boring, choosing rather, to wake up late and stay up late. I prefer the early morning sun, to the late night twilight, but each are as equally pretty. This morning I woke up, got ready, rushed out the door, rushed to the train, and in general, rushed to get to work. I arrived just before 8, and settled down for another day at the races. Upon opening my email, there was a message from a woman who works at my office, who I would rather not interact with. Her abrupt manner and condescending tone leave me feeling drained and stupid, and I sometimes think that she has taken it upon herself to make my life hell. Most days I avoid her and when I do have to interact with her, I just nod my head and say yes ma'am. Trust me, its easier that way. Her background is writing, and internally, that is what she does. She write proposals, strategies, and other corporate and PR related items. So the email this morning was her latest proposal that she wanted me (and another worker) to have a look over. Given the fact that she has been writing professionally for over 30 years, I almost didn't read it, but thought again. Knowing her, I would have a pop quiz on the contents of document and if I haven't read it, I would be setting myself up for pure hell. So I printed it off and started to read. First page - BAM! a grammatical error. I didn't know if I should leave it or correct it, weighing the options of either choice. I made note of it and kept reading. Flip forward to page 3 - BAM! An spelling error.

At this point, I honestly felt giddy with glee! I was correcting grammatical and spelling errors of a veteran. I still have a (internal) shit eating grin. To top it all off, it's Thursday.

I know I shouldn't play in other people's downfalls, but honestly, today, it made me realize that I'm not as bad as I think, she thinks I am (say that three times fast). As humans we all make mistakes, and I will hold my hand up for being part of that, but today, I saw this co-worker as an equal, as opposed to the snarling woman that she presents herself as. It still felt good through to put my thumb on my nose and say HA HA!

Day Seven - The Gift of a smile

This was written last week, and was going to be posted and then my computer blew up. So, exactly a week late, here is my Day seven post. For all of you who worried that I had disappeared, I'm still here, still taking photo's!

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Part of my daily routine at work is to walk to the post office and pick up the mail that has been delivered to out P.O. box. It is a nice way for me to get out of the office, to breathe unfiltered air and to stretch my legs. Since the weather is nicer, I’ve been taking my time, enjoying the sunshine and walking at a pace that isn’t light speed (I do that in the winter, and I’ve worked my time down to around 7 minutes!)

Wednesday had been a really bad day. I was chewed out a meeting for a seemingly minor mistake (I made a word have a capital “P” rather than a lower case “p”), in front of five people and I was super choked about the situation. As with me, I took the woman’s feedback, for what it was worth, and decided to have my own little feast on it. I analyzed, I reviewed from every angle and the only thing that I could come up with was that I needed to have an eat shit and die face. Let me explain. Given my personality type, I wear most of my emotions on my sleeve. It’s not hard to tell what type of mood I’m in or how I’m feeling that day, based on my facial expressions. So when this woman scorned me and lectured me, there were about 100 different emotions that passed across my face. The biggest one being embarrassment. So yesterday on my trip to the post office, as I was feasting on this woman’s comments, I concluded that having a stone face would be the best way to handle situations like that in the future.

Feeling better about myself and the situation, I headed for Tim Horton’s to pick up breakfast and to use my new found weapon. I stood in line, waiting my turn (somewhat impatiently, I might add) and when I was finally up at the counter, I gave my order and smiled. Shit, that wasn’t what I had planned. The man behind the counter looked almost startled as I stood there grinning like a fool (maybe it was the hunger, I don’t know). Slowly, the man cracked a smile and handed me my change. Thinking nothing of it (except maybe for the fact that my first attempted at “the look” had failed) I moved off to the side to wait for my bagel and coffee. The man behind the counter came over to me and said “Did you know that you are the first person to smile this morning? Everyone else comes in here are they look so unhappy and mean. Thank you”

Hold the phone! In my attempt to change myself so that I could better handle a work situation, I was inadvertently having an effect on someone else. See, if I had stood there and stone faced the man who was serving me, I would have been like everyone else. I would have been another cold face who didn’t give a damn. But smiling changed everything, including my mood. What a win/win situation. I smiled and he felt grateful. He felt grateful and my entire mood shifted, as did my day, as did the thoughts about my Wednesday meeting.

So today, I dare you to smile at a stranger. You never know who’s day you just might brighten.

Day Six - Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained

For all of you who thought that I had missed day five, fear not. A number of factors occurred, conspiring against me. But fear not, the strength of a goal is far more powerful than a dead camera or no cord for upload.

The power of a smile can be an incredible thing. Story coming later!

Day Five - Looking Forward

I'm happy that today is Wednesday and the weekend is in sight. It's exacty as the song goes "Everybody's working for the weekend". I sometimes feel like I am this little hamster that runs around the hamster wheel, gets off to sleep, and then gets right back on the next day. My dad always said "off to the rat race" before he left every morning when I was a kid. Sadly, I now understand. Monday and Tuesday are just days, but with the dawning of Wednesday, I know that I am on a downhill slide into Friday.

Given my nature, my weekend has already been sorted out, plotted and planned. It will involve two great loves of my life: Cooking and Horseback Riding. My mom is having a party for a friend who just graduated from Nursing School, and Chris and I have been asked to cook. That's Saturday. On Sunday, I'm going to meet Flash, the new horse in my life.

I always thought that moving back to Calgary would include never leaving my parents house, feeling redundant and pointless and me always yearning for somewhere else, doing something different. My weekend described above doesn't include any of those things. What a WOW! moment. Amazing what changing your glasses and changing your perspective can do for you. That's my goal for my today - Changing perspective. Taking the ordinary and looking at it from a different perspective and a different angle. How would things looked if you did the same thing?

Day Four - And Here Comes the Push

Day four - and I don't want to take a single photo. Not one. I have my camera sitting in front of me, and yet, the desire and will to pick it up is totally lost. Part of me wants to take no photo's and give into my blah feelings, but I know that will never accomplish anything. What it might accomplish is something that seems very counter productive to what I had originally set out to achieve. Good question - what did I set out to achieve? Was it truly a deviation from my work, or was it something else? It's day four - profound meaning hasn't yet arrived.

I'm feeling low today, mainly about work. I got to thinking this morning that maybe I needed to make a TILT list and replace Thursday with Tuesday: Things I love Tuesday. I think it will make me feel better. It will help me focus on what I have rather than what I don't.

Things I Love Tuesday:
Chris ~ A roommate who makes me feel like a million bucks ~ laughter ~ discovering hidden paths near my house that have swings hidden in the lilac bushes ~ Schmonny Schmenkins ~ Loving and supportive parents ~ Friends who move from Scotland to Calgary ~ Upcoming vacations and concerts ~ New cookbooks ~ Dancing and singing to the music at Super Store ~ Chocolate ~ Hope in changing my situation ~ baseball practice ~ Making a commitment and sticking to it ~ Stretching, even though it's painful~ Anticipation of matching ink in August.

I feel better. My lunch today will be spent taking photo's. It will give me a chance to stretch in more ways than one.

Day Three - A Hint of Something Better to Come

The start of a work week can have different effects on different people. Some wake up, filled with excitement and anticipation of the week ahead, while others, hit the snooze button 3 times before finally realizing what time it is and rushing to get to work. Today, although happy, I neither felt excitement or dismay. I hit the snooze button once, but more out of principle than

necessity. It just seemed like the right thing to do at 6:20 this morning.

.


Today, while taking a stroll to pick up the office mail, the most pleasant smell crossed my nose, and within seconds, I was transported to another year and place: Collonge, France, Fall, 2005. The man standing next to me at an intersection had a Venti Starbucks drink, with a tiny white string rising from the inside and gracefully stopping half way down the cup. He was drinking Earl Grey tea. Everytime the wind pick up, the frangrance of tea found my nose and suddenly Calgary wasn't were my feet were planted. It was France. You see, I lived in France for one year. I attended a school that was atop a hilll and overlooked Geneva. On exceptionally good days, the Jet D'eau could be seen from my perch. Life couldn't have been more amazing. My roommate and I both had a love for coffee, but considering we didn't have access to a coffee maker (and the school never served anything decent), we improvised and came up with the next best thing - tea. But not just any tea. Earl Grey tea, with a touch of sugar and powered milk. Every morning, before heading to the cafeteria to grab breakfast, we would pour the hot water into our traveling mugs and watch the miracle unfold. If you have never had Earl Grey tea, graced with milk and sugar, you must immediatly go out and purchase the necessary ingredients. The taste is nothing more than sublime and you won't be disappointed. Caution: Don't blame me if you become addicted.

I'm curious to see what happens the more time I spend downtown, with my camera . I've been thinking that maybe I need to give myself mini-tasks. For example, take at least 5 pictures sitting at my desk, or take 5 pictures of other people's lunchs (ok, that one might be scary... I don't know how I would feel if someone asked me if they could take a picture of my lunch - seems like a private sort of affair.) None the less, you get what I'm saying.

Thank goodness tomorrow is Tuesday! Pictures will be posted on Wednesday morning.

Day Two - A walk followed by a shopping trip

Today was the Enerflex MS walk in Calgary. My cousin has MS. She is 25. Although they say it isn't genetic, I have to wonder. My great Grand Mother had MS, so I ask, what's not genetic about that? The V Team raised over $10,000 dollars for MS research. I have to admit that I am feeling rather shamed by not raising money, which was further amplified by my cousin. Great.


Find the camera and photographer in this photo. A where's Julie of sorts.

Day One - A Cold Kind of Day

When I first woke up this morning, the snow was falling like it was January - with one exception: There are leaves on the trees. I have to ask, why is it snowing in June? And until the sun came out, the snow stayed most of the morning. It made for the perfect day to stay inside and watch movies, sleep and move as little as possible. My kind of Saturday.



The proof is on the delivery truck (and this was taken at 10:30 this morning).



Grocery stores contain many hidden jewels that go unappreciated. Have you ever stopped to take a look at the symmetry, color and typography? It truly is a visual master piece. Today I stopped to take a minute, take a picture and take a second glance.

Once the sun came out, everything melted. Anything red against a gray backdrop is amazing.

The first of many photo's to come. Whenever I visit my friend Stacey, I almost think that these houses were picked up out of a toy village and placed in Mackenzie Town. I love the way the look.

Quick before I have too many tapes fire!

I've got about 100 ideas racing through my head, along the with 101 negative things that I am saying with it. We humans are so terrible at creating our own demise. That said, I've decided that I need a project. Not any project, but rather a project that challenges me, forces me out of my comfort zone, and stretches me in all directions. I tell myself that "Life begins outside my comfort zone" and yet, I've been sitting in my bubble for a little too long now. Things are too comfortable. I've become boring, in a comfortable sort of way.

Time for my Stretch Assignment.
A little background information:

1. I have a degree in photography from a tiny little university in the South West corner of Michigan. My photography classes were 10% theory and 90% shooting. My skills improved exponentially in proportion to the amount time spent behind the camera. Oh course I had assignments, but again, it was all camera-in-hand time. To date, one of my favorite assignments was choosing a subject, and taking 720 pictures of the same thing. My subject was feet. Yes folks, I have 720 pictures of feet. It was my project, my stretch (although I didn't see it at the time) and my achievement. There were tears, frustrated sighs and banging of my head against the wall, but in the end, I became better. I began to see feet in a whole new way. Feet become almost secondary to how my skills and photographic eye changed and became better.

2. In reading people's blogs, biographies and general tips about life, I've come across a reoccurring theme, time and time again. Practice makes perfect. Cliche, I know, but it's true. I look to Julia Child as my cooking inspiration: she cooked more things that were totally pathetic, before she became the American hero for French food. My photography inspirations are Richard Avedon, Annie Leibovitz, and my friend Richard Choi (among others). There are thousands of photos that will never see a magazine or light table, but that's not the point. The point is, they took so many photographs, even when they were terrible, and kept pushing forward, one photograph at a time, until they became the people they are today.

3. I have often wondered why I moved back to Calgary. I don't believe that it was my choice. It was my decision yes, but with the depth of my being, I believe that something bigger than myself was at work. I have come to accept and love (most of the time) the fact that I live in Calgary, but the lingering question as to why, still pops up every once and a while. Maybe it's time time shift my thinking and not wonder why, but ask, why not? Maybe it's time to turn the negative tape I have about living in Calgary into one of love, acceptance and peace?

4. In the last couple of days, I've read some interesting things. First, there is a Flirk group that has people take one photograph of themselves a day and post it. They must do this for 365 days. (I was presented the challenge in University about taking one photograph a day - if that doesn't sound hard, I ask you to think again. It's a lot harder than you think.) Second, I was sent a link for the 101 things in 1001 days challenge. This involved making a list of the 101 things you wanted to do in 1001 days. It doesn't have to be huge elaborate goals, but rather things you want to accomplish in 1001 days. One woman made pizza dough from scratch. You go girl!

The Assignment

Here is the deal: For the next 365 days, I am going to take my camera everywhere, take a minimum of 5 pictures a day, posting the top 5 every day on my blog and write about what I have seen through the lens of a camera. This will be a huge stretch for me, Why? Although I love the camera and what I can capture with it, it also intimidates me. And, further to this, I love taking photo's of people. So, unless I am taking pictures of myself all the time, I will be forced to talk to people and step out from behind my shyness.

Start Date: June 6, 2009

End Date: June 6, 2010

Stay tuned, the adventure starts tomorrow. I'm nervous already. Shit.