no i'm not perfect but i hope you see my worth.

another lyrical posto, this time off 
the criminally under-rated "at my worst" by pink sweats.

it think it's pretty plain and simple. we gave it all we could.

another lyrical posto to start off the 2021 bloggy.

it's just another one of those pop tunes that just

catches you from start to finish. with a kick-ass video as well!

the melodic "we're good" by the brilliant dua lipa.

L.S.W.N.#3 (my mct bubble).

let's face it, i'll never be one to love the great outdoors

or to be adventurous and outgoing like other folk, 

but that certainly doesn't mean i don't appreciate going out

to places i like and with the company of those who i enjoy!

so this is basically my connectivity bubble looks like during

my lovely time living back in wonderful muscat!

critic, critique, critical.

be receptive to both sides. and make it work for you.

a query came up regarding criticism.

...or in this case, the art of receiving criticism.

now, anyone who's dealt with me knows that i would

have no qualms about criticizing you, and i'd do it 

directly, indirectly, mean, nice, depending on the situation.

well, the important thing to keep in mind of, is the spirit

of that criticism. do it when there are valid concerns to 

address, do it when there are mistakes to be avoided, 

do it to get things running better, do it when you can get

even 1% of a productive result. don't do it if it's mean spirited. 

...do it for the right reasons.

now, the flipside of this is for me to receive criticism itself.

a natural reaction would be negative of course. after all,

we're all human beings. it's a natural reaction to feel peeved.

however, the 1st thing to do is to go back to the spirit of it.

so for every piece of criticism, i need to put faith that it was

done in order to be constructive, instead of to be mean to me.

now, in all these years, through lots of experiences,

i've managed to train myself to look at things this way;

1. have faith in the person who's delivering the criticism. there

might be something there that i've actually missed. and the person

criticizing me is actually someone who cares about me.

2. if it's purely negative or nonconstructive criticism; it 

doesn't change what i'm pursuing, because i have faith in what

i'm doing itself. and this is what i mean by that;

2a.  i know what i'm doing, i know what my objectives are,

i know why i'm doing it, so no-one can discourage me.

2b. i know that things take time, and i might not get the 

results i want as quickly as i want, but it's ok, because a

lot of things in life takes effort and time.

2c. there's often more than 1 way to get where i want to be.

and i trust that i often have to go through a natural process

or through a lot of steps. and that's ok.

3. if it's positive or constructive criticism, even better! and 

this is what i mean by that;

3a . by having external criticism, i might find additional truths

or additional benefits and it'll just ADD to the objectives i want!

3b. by getting criticized, i can realize new ways to improve and

to reach my objectives and goals faster than what i 1st thought!

3c. by receiving criticism, i can find new or better ways and

processes and steps in order to achieve my dreams!

so there, provide criticism for the right reasons, and learn to

receive and how to handle both positive and negative ones.

...it'll definitely make you a better person, trust me!

L.S.W.N.#2 (the lockdown trend).

since we've been on lockdown for almost 3 months now,

here's a typical trend for us normal folk over the period:

i. waking up to a bright, lovely new day

ii. realizing we're still in lockdown, 2 seconds later

iii. reading our text messages / jokes sent by frens / watch cat videos

iv. finding out it's still 8.30 am AFTER everything in step iii

v. deciding to jog / watch our fave tv shows / clean the house / 

cook or try to cook / order food delivery and saying hi and thanks

to the fantastic delivery people / bug frens and family thru watsapp / 

play playstation or pc games endlessly / watch more cat videos /

read the story books that we meant to / update this darn blog for once

vi. realizing tomorrow is another day and we should be grateful

for everything life has given us and always hope for the best to come!

L.S.W.N.#1 (the working person).

hellue boys and girls!

today we're trying out a brand new segment;

Life Science Wit Najmi

as with lots of my new segments in the past,

this too, would probably fade away and disappear,

but as with all things, let's give it shot and see ya!

0 = that 1st day of reporting for work in a new team / 

different building / foreign country / alien planet

i = getting to your nice new desk and computer /

meeting your new desk-mate / teammates / boss

ii = realizing that your new desk-mate / teammates /

boss are a bit weird and potentially being sociopaths

iii = realizing you have absolutely no clue what you're doing

iv = lunch time / getting hot chocolate from the pantry /

gossiping with your similarly evil-minded friends

v = performance reviews / career progression exams /

your pc crashing and you forgot to save 8 hours of work

vi = getting acknowledgement / praise / mediocre ranking

because it's either they don't mean it or you're used to it by now

infinity timeline = when you slowly but finally realize 

the truth that work NEVER EVER ENDS!

coach the coach, train the trainers, and lead the leaders.

be the one who puts all the white ladders together

had a good conversation regarding coaching or leadership.

now, in my opinion, the problem with this concept is the 

assumption that everyone has the innate ability to do so.

in my experience, i find that to not be true.

now, don't get me wrong, i do believe that some are natural

born leaders, but most aren't, and everyone needs guidance

on how to lead and inspire, instead of just trial and error.

you need to be trained or learn to lead or coach others.

the reality of industries is such, that people are promoted

based on necessity or based on merits of their core position.

for example, you're entrusted to lead an engineering team

because you've been a very good engineer.

and the other instance is where, if you are a senior engineer,

you are expected to coach or mentor others, whether you'd

like to or otherwise, or whether you're capable to or not.

now, the downfall of these two instances is, leading or 

coaching is a TOTALLY different ballgame from executing.

managing people is a highly complex and specific skillset.

imagine being a staff for 10, 15, 20 years. what WILL 

work for your favour once you are promoted into a leader

or coach is, you've been around the industry long enough

to understand what works and what doesn't in the industry,

AND by that time you have been exposed to different bosses

and teammates and different styles of working.

so, in the absence of anything else, you would purely rely on 

YOUR experience and training. and what works specifically 

for YOU based on YOUR preferences and values.

but what if they're not positive or yields excellent results?

this is where i feel three things become vital;

two of them being proper training and a conducive environment.

proper training can consist of many different things like

training courses, trial on-the-job training, management books,

online courses, and my personal favourite; to gather and

learn from experienced people in those positions.

and a conducive environment consists of the opportunity

to make mistakes and improve, given time to implement

ideas, and being in an organization that actually has the

same set of values and orientation as the training. 

besides, what's the point in spending time and money and

effort to train and coach people, when the actual organization

doesn't even practice those values and goals in the 1st place?

and what's the third important element? YOU.

you need to WANT to do it. i think you should be honest and 

true to yourself, give it a shot, because sometimes you never

know where your true passion lies, but be transparent if you don't.

now, the thing i like about honesty about a role is, it'll make you

relish and push to be the best you can at it if you're passionate,

and you'll care about those in your circle and in turn, you'd just 

go the extra mile just to help them become the best that THEY can.

nothing like seeing others grow and succeed and be happy.

...not to mention you'll find fulfillment and happiness in your role.

and THAT, can be more valuable than all the riches in the world.