Decisions, Decisions

After another exhausting day working in the Philippines in the weeks after Typhoon Yolanda hit, a few of us were sitting around trying not to talk about work. The conversation turned to upcoming vacation plans and when it was my turn I said, “I have no idea. There are too many choices and I don’t have the capacity to make that decision right now.”

Donald was walking by at that precise moment and overhead the exchange. He stopped before our group and said, “You should go to Cassis, France. It’s beautiful

Roots

Once while standing in the middle of an aspen grove on the top of a mountain in Santa Fe, New Mexico, someone casually pointed out that every aspen tree in sight was connected to one another by the same root system. That each and every tree grew from the same mother line and that all the trees in the colony received nourishment from the same root system. They went on to say that if one tree is not well, the others will divert their own nourishment to that tree so it too can survive. That aspens have the ability to sprout anew in the same area after a fire because the root system is deep in the ground. While the fire rages on top of the ground, the root system is protected and simply waits for the fire to burn out.

5 Lessons Learned While Working with Doctors Without Borders

In the midst of life, as it swirls around, acting upon us and pushing us about, we may forget that our purpose is to learn and to use those learnings going forward. We get caught up with what is happening and forget to take time to contemplate what we have learned. Then someone comes along and unexpectedly forces you to name what it is you have learned when they ask: “Catherine, what are the five things you learned while working in the field with Doctors Without Borders?”

Fear of Success

There I was one summer afternoon, in the chilly waters of Lake Wasilla, a teenager struggling to waterski. "Hit it!” I yelled time after time. The boat would roar forward on command, the rope connecting me to my latest challenge growing taut. I could feel the power of the boat through the rope as it tried in vain to pull me up and on top of the water. It would not happen that afternoon.

Mom was with me in the struggle, yelling words of advice and suggestions from the boat. On what would be the boat’s last circle around for the day, I looked up at her from the water, shivering and

Babies in Buckets: Creativity Without Limits

When working in the field with Doctors Without Borders, I frequently have the honor of watching sparks of imagination transform into creative realities. What I find most remarkable is the obvious truth that the more limited the context, options, and tools … the more creative the ideas that come forth. Having seen this truth manifest repeatedly, it occurs to me that we have it backwards. The general assumption seems to be that there will be great strides in creativity when possibilities abound but in fact, our greatest creative endeavors come when there are significant constraints. Necessity truly is the mother of invention.

Who Adjusts?

In a social dance, there are the identified roles of leader and follower, but these are simply labels of convenience. At a foundational level, leaders are action and followers are reaction. The reality however is that when a solid foundation exists, the roles of action and reaction easily transition between partners and the dance becomes a conversation expressed in physical form.

Dragons and Passions

A friend of mine loves to ride horses. She lives on a ranch, has six horses, eighty sheep, a couple of goats, a few chickens, and five dogs. She has a full-time job to support her love and hires ranch hands to help with the day-to-day running of the ranch. Unfortunately, the ranching profession is transient by nature and most of the time there is not enough help. During one such spell when there was not enough help, I offered my services as a ranch hand for a few days. From sunup to sundown, we spent our time mucking stalls, hauling hay, stacking hay, feeding animals, running water, fixing fences, caring for animals, and getting things in order for the next feeding.
 

Just there!

We had been trekking through the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda when the guy with the rifle held up his hand. We instantly stopped walking and became very quiet while he stepped off the path and disappeared into the midst of the dense green foliage. I took the opportunity to sit down where I stood and inspect my shoe wear.
 
I had arrived to Uganda for a short mission and while packing made the choice to leave my hiking shoes behind. It never occurred to me that during my short time in Uganda there would be the possibility of a gorilla trekking safari that would involve

Imposters

At a barbeque recently I asked a friend how she was doing.   She opted for the standard response and declared “Fine.”   She then turned to the chip bowl, sought out the perfect chip and plunged it into the green chili dip.    As she began to munch I asked, “Are you lying to me?” 

To those helping in Nepal . . .

Forgive me if you feel as if I am telling you something you already know. My true intention is to remind you of what you are likely to forget. While life swirls chaotically around you right now with great speed and intensity, it will feel as if taking a breath is impossible. It will feel as if the place where your calm resides is far away and unattainable. But know that these are only feelings. For the truth is your calm is where you left it. Your calm is waiting for your return.
 

As you provide help in the aftermath of devastating earthquakes in Nepal, please remember to take the occasional moment to return to your calm. Over 8,000 have lost their lives and we know that number will

"You Don't Know These Things"

An Administrator’s job is varied and one never really knows what the day may hold. And so it was one warm sunny afternoon in Homa Bay, Kenya when one of the items on this

Administrator’s to-do list was to relocate a chicken from one expat house to another expat house. On my way out of the office my co-worker and housemate Alpha asked where I was going. I explained the task at hand and Alpha decided he could use a break and began walking with me. Off we went in our quest; one Administrator from the United States and one Surgeon from Guinea to relocate a chicken. You just can’t plan these kinds of things.

Selling Tomatoes

SL​​At the junction of two dirt lanes in a small village in the Ivory Coast is a little girl selling tomatoes. She sells tomatoes and other essential items from a stall made out of tree branches, planks of wood and corrugated tin. The stall shows signs of repair and leans to the right. When I knew her she was about 12 years old and it is one of my biggest regrets in life that I never learned her name.
 
It’s my fault. When I was living in this village, I made the conscience choice to not learn her name. My fear was that by connecting with her at any level, even one so simple as

Understand the Rules. Then Break Them.

One of my passions is dancing West Coast Swing. WCS is a partner dance with roots in Lindy Hop and those roots include the six-count basic, syncopated steps, and the complete and utter joy fanatics take in the dance. Beyond these roots, the similarities end and what remains is evolution and growth.

Improvisation is the key in WCS and music is the master and this master compels both partners to constantly stretch and challenge themselves to ensure the notes being played are brought to a physical expression and the music brought to life.
 
As with any activity there is a spectrum upon which a person can rove and explore in WCS. From beginner to professional, from social dancer to competitor: each person finding that sweet spot in this dance that combines the technical with the imaginative. As in life, there are a lot of moving parts in WCS. Not just yours but also those of your partner and of those who may be dancing around you. And, in this dance, as in life, there are many rules.
 
Learning the rules takes dedicated time. And what every dancer knows is that there is a difference between learning in a controlled environment such as a class or practice session and learning in what one of my more influential instructors called “combat situation.” She was referring of course to the reality that is the social dance floor.
 
Learning the rules of dance and flawlessly executing those rules requires both a theoretical understanding as well as “floor time”. The time spent in theory allows the dancer to pace through and understand the moving parts and how they interrelate with one another. Floor time is where we dance; where we perfect the movement of the parts. It is floor time where mistakes are made and the real learning takes place. It is only with dedicated floor time can one dance from rules in theory to rules in action.
 
Once the transition from theory to action is made then the real fun can begin: improvisation. For it is only after knowing the rules that you can then bend them, twist them and break them in the name of creation and bringing the master to life. It is this ability to break rules, to improvise and create that makes the anguish of learning the rules with worth the hard work and effort.
 
And it is more than just breaking rules. It is about breaking the rules artfully and with grace; breaking the rules in such a way that all other moving parts are not impacted. To dance freely, creating and improvising in such a way that it does not stop others from their exploration of the rules. To watch as your rule breaking inspires your partner and together you now bring the music alive in ways that cause you both to be surprised at what you have created. The music is no longer a static predictable equation but more like a snowflake in which there are millions yet each one is unique.
 
Dance truly is a metaphor for life. Both are about evolution and growth. Both offer a spectrum upon which we are all capable of moving along in whatever direction we so desire. Like dance, life has a lot of moving parts that must be considered. And most assuredly, there are rules in life that require the patience to learn. The patience to learn the theory and then the drive to put in the floor time which is, after all, just another word for experience. And as in dance, so it is in life: the joy in learning the rules comes when we discover we fully understand them and can now so ably break them; when we are fully able to improvise, create and bring the music that is life, alive.


www.catherinecarr.global
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Even Lady Gaga Practices

How odd it is for me to think that one of my new heroes is Lady Gaga. I have always understood at an intellectual level that she is talented and have even been known to sing along with her more popular songs.

And there is always the joy that comes from watching as she pushes the envelope prompting people to shake their heads and try to imagine what she will come up with next. To try and predict which barrier she will blast next. Watching from a distance and appreciating her talents was one thing but to now have her hold the title of “Catherine’s newest hero” surprises me.

Helping is the Most Natural Thing in the World

On November 8, 2013 a super typhoon hit Southeast Asia. In a region of the world comprised mostly of islands some of the hardest hit that day were the islands in the

Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. I had the honor of being a part of the Doctors Without Borders team that went to the region in response to the typhoon the Filipinos named Yolanda.
 
It would take months after Yolanda passed through before the extent of the damage would come into focus and still, over a year later, the numbers are in dispute. Some estimates are that there were sustained winds reaching over 170 miles per hour and storm surges of up to 19 feet high. Over 6,000

10,000 Hours or Bust

I love the 10,000-Hour Rule. I love its simplicity and its “what word did you not understand?” clarity. You want to be good at something? Then plan to spend 10,000 hours of practice to get to the level of mastery associated with being a world class expert. I did the math. 10,000 hours is equivalent to 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year with no vacation, for nearly 5 years. Sub-text: “A lot of hard work.”
 
Call me gullible but 10,000 hours sounds about right to me. I’m not looking for loopholes or shortcuts nor will I quibble about the number of hours it might actually take. I don’t wish to waste precious hours and besides, there are plenty of experts already in that ring fighting it out. I have spent nearly fifteen years working in the realm of HR, five of them with Doctors Without Borders and the change I have to bring about has only just begun. I am now creating something that I can’t yet define that will allow me to continue what I love, share what I have learned and bring worlds together. The struggle now becomes one of transformation and redefinition and this is where I choose to spend my hours. I am fully on board with the rule’s concept and accept its premise and challenge.
 
As I move forward on this overgrown and scary path of creating a new life, I find that much of my mental meandering time is spent pondering the mechanics of the 10,000-Hour Rule. My meanderings are about how the rule remains relevant and true for those of us who have looked up to find the horizon closer than we ever imagined it would be. In response to this every-creeping horizon many of us now stand with a machete in hand, whacking away to forge a new path.
 
A natural first meandering is to ask “what might I have already done for 10,000 hours?” Who wants to start from scratch and frankly, how cool would it be to have achieved the level of expert without even realizing it? To have achieved the level of mastery simply because we have been around the block a few times would be most welcome news. I was able to bring to mind a few careers, hobbies and physiological functions like sleeping, eating and breathing that might come close but when I add the qualifiers of “deliberate” and “intentional” hours, nothing comes to mind.
 
While babysitting the house of some friends, I found myself with time, a desire to procrastinate, and Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers on the bookshelf. I now consider these events to have been the opportunities that led me to read the fine print to the 10,000-Hour Rule. I turned to Chapter Two and within minutes the thought occurred that indeed, I had been gullible. Mr. Gladwell’s featured experts had achieved mastery by the time they were young adults.
 
It was a natural fight reaction to jump to the “am I too late?” question. I was comforted by the fact that the women in my family live a very long time if they take care of themselves and stay out of traffic. But I was more comforted by the instinctive knowledge that age is not a valid constraint to the rule. When I read about experts in general, it is apparent that most of them have spent their deliberate and intentional hours practicing something that brought them joy. Translation: it is never too late for the pursuit of happiness.
 
Supporting the rule’s sub-text, Mr. Gladwell offers hope. In the “achievement is talent plus preparation” equation, “the smaller the role innate talent seems to play and the bigger the role preparation seems to play.” This bodes well for those of us holding machetes. We have preparation on our side. Deliberate or not, we have logged practice hours in a variety of areas that will only serve as we forge ahead.
 
The real silver lining that the rule’s fine print bestows concerns opportunity, extraordinary opportunity. In the lives of Mr. Gladwell’s featured experts, they were granted extraordinary opportunities that allowed them to accrue practice hours early in life: supportive parents, community support, and what some might call coincidences and others might call fate.
 
After reading the fine print I am certain that it is opportunity which will keep the 10,000-Hour Rule relevant and true for those clearing new paths. As adults, we are no longer dependent on our parents. We take what we have and do what all parents want their children to do: to do better than they did. We have the power to create and design our communities. We can create communities that act as our foundation and will be as strong as we build them to be. We can build communities in alignment with our values and include honest and supportive individuals who allow us to benefit from their practice hours. We stand on the shoulders of others and help others to stand on ours.
 
As for coincidence or fate, thankfully, these moments happen all the time in life. In fact, I firmly believe we have the power to create them. The trick is to recognize these moments for what they are when they appear: doors of opportunity. Doors of all sizes surround us as we go about our day. Some are obvious and swing wide open showing a well-lit path while others are small and easy to overlook. The door is shut and requires action on our part to discover that it is unlocked and the light switch easy to locate.
 
Enjoy your pursuit of happiness and the 10,000 hours in that thing that makes time just disappear. And remember, as important as the hours are, it is even more important to create your opportunities, recognize the doors around you as opportunities and do what can be a very scary thing, actually walk through them.


Originally posted with www.hrcsuite.com.

www.catherinecarr.global
#springdeep

Spidey-Senses: 3 things we can learn from Spiderman about Communication

In 2012, after working with Doctors Without Borders for a few years, we agreed it was time for me to learn French. My commitment was for the long-term and with French as a language skill, there would be more work opportunities. The most effective way to learn a new language is immersion; a theory more familiarly known as sink or swim. My particular immersion program would start with a few months in a Paris classroom while living with a host family followed by a six-month field assignment in a small village in the Ivory Coast.
 

For the better part of a year I lived and breathed the French language. You know what? It worked. Other than some jumbled grammar and an accent that just won’t

Are Your Recruiting Rules Working?

While working in a small village north of somewhere we needed to do a quick recruitment. I was working with Doctors Without Borders and medical data was coming in that indicated a rise in measles cases. Due to the conflict in the area, the previously functioning health system was in shambles and for several years children had not been receiving their normal routine vaccinations. We made the decision to respond before an epidemic hit.
 
We would hire from the community over 50 people: guards, drivers, assistant nurses, nurses, logisticians, and an administrator to help with the month-long vaccination

It's Not About The Gunfire

“It’s not about the gunfire” I said, trying to explain to my boss why I simply could not extend my mission as the Country HR Manager in Bangui, the capital of The Central African Republic (CAR). I was at the tail end of a one-year contract with Doctors Without Borders and on my
fourth emergency response since signing the contract. The plan was to be there for a total of two months and I simply could not imagine a third. And it really wasn’t about the gunfire we heard almost daily or the horrible violence throughout the region. It wasn’t about working and living in French, a language I was still not completely comfortable with. It wasn’t about being restricted to working and living with the same people in the same compound day after day, night after night. And if you think sleeping under a mosquito net every night is sexy, then you haven’t ever had to do it. It wasn’t until months later, after some serious recovery time and honest reflection, that I could look back and see what “it” was. The truth is that I was exhausted.
 
Doctors Without Borders, known around the world by its French name Médecins Sans Frontiers (and also by its acronym MSF), is an international humanitarian organization providing medical aid to populations in need. At the time I was flailing around in my mind trying to figure out what “it” was, MSF emergency teams were in CAR bringing additional support to field teams already in place. CAR is a country of over four million whose people have not seen true peace or stability in decades. A country that in late 2013 saw increased levels of ethno-religious violence. Since that time thousands have been killed and over 600,000 forced to flee their homes. If you don’t know what is happening in CAR I can’t fault you. CAR is a country few know about or can even find on a map because it receives very little media attention despite the terrible and horrible things happening there. One can imagine burnout in working conditions like this, but the fact is burnout happens in all working environments.
 
Regardless of the organization, context, or geographical location, part of HR’s responsibility is to manage employee wellness and reduce, if not eliminate, employee burnout. No organization can survive high rates of burnout amongst their employees. Morale drops, mistakes are made, creativity disappears, talent and experience walk out the door, and the working environment becomes oppressive instead of inspiring. Knowing the signs and planning ahead with all team members to keep burnout at bay is critical. And like the oxygen masks that drop from the compartment overhead in airplanes, when conditions for burnout are present we need to first help ourselves before helping others.
 
There are many roads to burnout, each one with its own unique characteristics and scenery. At times the road is long, straight and well-planned. A road that has been laid down as a vision before a team of dedicated individuals. Individuals who will step onto the road to pursue their passions and give their all to a vision they collectively feel deep in their hearts somehow knowing when it is speed or endurance that is of the essence. Other times the road is short and uphill both ways. A team of people coming together in response to an unplanned crisis or need and using their knowledge, experience and creativity to put things back on track.
 
Roads can be lined by fans providing encouragement and support at critical junctures or be a single track road with a lone individual pushing themselves along, motivated by goals others cannot see. But the most dangerous roads are those created from nothing. Sometimes we adrenaline junkies get a taste of that lovely adrenaline rush. We don’t want the ride to end and so we create more road. The emergency has ended but we create new emergencies just to keep the high. That adrenaline rush is better than anything you can buy on the streets.
 
It takes an immensely courageous individual to step out and announce when they see signs of burnout. And for those able to recognize and admit burnout in themselves, well, let’s just call them this special breed of human what they are: highly-evolved individuals. Calling out the signs is a difficult thing to do especially when the entire team is on the road going at an exciting pace with fans and support crew caught up in the frenzy. No one wants to be responsible for slowing down the ride or admitting their own human-ness by putting on the oxygen mask dangling in front of their eyes. And just to put it all out there, let’s acknowledge the fact that many times some may perceive someone who burns out as weak and no one wants to be thought of as anything less than strong and fully capable. When telling someone you think they may be exhibiting signs of burnout, their immediate denial and reaching for another cigarette is a not an uncommon first reaction.
 
There are as many signs for burnout as there are individuals. More importantly than memorizing a list of signs, the better approach is for all team members, not just the HR person, to be aware of what “normal” behavior is for one another. I have worked with people for whom drinking a liter of diet soda a day is normal for them. When they start adding Red Bull to the soda when before there was none, this is when I start paying attention to make sure they are still ok. Typically it will be a close team member who first notices when someone is deviating from their “normal” and depending on the force or duration of the deviation it will warrant attention, monitoring and or possibly a heart to heart discussion.
 
Signs can generally be put into one of three categories: changes in personality, changes in performance, or changes in physical appearance. In the name of helping ourselves first, following are some key questions I now ask myself at regular intervals to keep burnout at bay.
 

• Has one or more team member come up to me wide-eyed, put a hand on my shoulder, stared deep into my eyes, said “are you ok?”, and then, actually waited for a response?
• When my computer dings to indicate an incoming email, do I audibly take in a deep breath, think “what now?” and then forget to let the breath out?
• Are my shoulders at a natural level below the ear lobes or are they resting just at the level of the temples of my forehead?
• Is everyone being unreasonable, demanding, or lacking a sense of humor?
• In the past 3 days have I averaged more or less than 4 hours of sleep a night?
• When was the last time I ate a fruit or vegetable?
• What is my water to coffee ratio?
• When was the last time I exercised?
• Where does personal hygiene stand in my list of daily priorities?
• When someone asks me to do something that I normally do with my hands tied behind my back, am I smiling because I envision them suddenly dropping through a hole in the floor or am I happy to help?
• Do I see colors? Not just the color red but the entire color spectrum. Has life evolved to be only variations of black and white?
• Can I read and comprehend an entire email, article, chapter, or traffic sign without becoming distracted?
• Have I recently tried to convince someone else that I am not tired and that I just need a nap?
• Have I found myself in a rut? Right there in the middle of a civil war?

Perhaps your own questions will be slightly different but probably not much. What you are looking for is anything that indicates you are operating out of the realm of what is normal for you. And sometimes we have to look at ourselves through the eyes of a trusted friend or co-worker in order to see clearly.
 
Like most catastrophes, the better prepared we are, the more we can do to mitigate the actual impact of the catastrophe on our lives. Catching burnout sooner rather than later decreases recovery time and increases the chance an individual will return as a contributing member of the team. If you know of a team who is or soon will be stepping onto a road that can lead to burnout, as an integral part of the project plan, create a wellness plan and have the team talk about how they are going to avoid burnout before it happens. Then, build into the project planning time and money for recovery. Trust me, it is easier to have this discussion before rather than later. It is simply no fun trying to tell someone, and even worse, yourself, that they are not their normal selves.
 
Like the signs for burnout, there are as many methods for recovery as there are individuals. What works for you might not work for someone else. Some prefer beach time, hiking time, or travelling time while others prefer going deep into their high-speed Internet accessible caves with a healthy supply of Dr. Pepper and Cheetos for super long periods of time. Allow people to define for themselves how they recover and ensure your policies are flexible and not prescriptive. Eliminate the concept of fair (i.e. everyone gets the exact same thing) and allow for flexibility (i.e. everyone gets to pursue recover in their own way).
 
Lastly, for those courageous and highly evolved individuals who have the capacity to recognize and acknowledge signs of burnout in themselves, know that you are not weak and that you are in fact human. Know that you are indeed highly evolved and have a responsibility to yourself, your family and your team to take care of yourself. Pay attention to what becomes normal in your work and in your life. If your normal has evolved over time to be consistently less than 4 hours of sleep a night and a compulsion to cause more damage than the typhoon caused a month before, you have to know that this really is not normal behavior. Take the opportunity to be a role model and take the recovery time you need before you need it. Show by example that on the road to accomplishment sometimes we have to take a few steps back in order to take a giant leap forward.

Originally posted with www.hrcsuite.com.

www.catherinecarr.global
#springdeep

Finally. An answer

Over the years I have continued to search for that most perfect and appropriate sound-bite answer. An answer that is quick, to the point, encompassing and thought-provoking, all at the same time.

An answer that can be given in the time it takes an elevator to get from the 1st floor to the 3rd floor of any building. The answer has continued to elude me, until now.

The lightening strike happened in Aura, Uganda. There I was, sitting outside enjoying some coffee and listening to the noises that naturally occur in MSF Compounds all over the world: birds chirping, dogs

Flashlights and Telephones

On occasion Dad has been known to say some very thought-provoking things. Thankfully he says these things repeatedly so they are bound to sink in at some point, even if it does take “uh-hum” number of years for it to happen.

One of his sayings that has most recently come home to roost is “I hope my life never depends on a flashlight or a telephone”. The flashlight we will deal with later. As for the telephone, let’s start with the battery.

For those who live in a first-world country and have the ability to both plan and follow through with a plan, battery life really isn’t a concern. If however you live somewhere other than a first-world county, forget it.

Engagement in the Non-Profit Setting

In 1972 Angie Vachio and Christine Ruiz were working with women in a day facility for the clinically depressed. Every day, women from around the city of Albuquerque would come to the facility to receive support and medication for their depression. At the end of each day, the women would go home.
 
One day, Angie and Christine asked a question that set off a chain of events that would impact the lives of thousands of children and families, “Who do these women go home to?”
 
Nothing would have happened if Angie and Christine hadn’t taken the time to find out the answer to their question and, more important, if they had not had the passion to respond to the answer. So Angie and Christine began offering the women rides home and found the answer to their question. Many of the women were going

Getting Uncomfortable

One Saturday morning I woke up and decided something had to change. It wasn’t that I was unhappy. It was more that I was too comfortable in my self-created rut. I had been working in and around human resources for most of my career and had recently added non-profit finance to my resume. I had a job I loved, people I loved to work with and I believed whole-heartedly in the cause of the non-profit I was working with. So what was the problem? In retrospect I guess there were no challenges on the horizon and everything seemed very predictable. There was just that feeling that it was time to get uncomfortable.
 
While the coffee was brewing I let my mind drift over and around the things that made me happy. It came down to travelling and challenges. I decided to apply for a position working for an international organization. I didn’t care what the job was; cook, cleaner, mechanic, it didn’t matter. Working overseas had been something I always said I wanted to do but until that Saturday I had yet to take a first step in that