What happened since Chapter 63 Let’s reflect?
Actually from a health perspective I did get good news from haematologist who confirmed I am doing ok with sugar level management which was for me a relief as in my mind I was actually managing it in a poor way. Maybe I am just to hard on myself but I think it is key to me I remain focused and serious about it as it will stay for ever.
From a travel perspective in the last couple of month I had the luxury to visit my usual places, Houston, India, The Netherlands, Belgium, London and also one week off in Spain… in other words almost another country every other week 🙄.
My latest trip to Bangalore made me meet someone being hit by an AML like I got hit earlier in my life and it moved me to spend a couple of hours with her and her family… I have literally been amazed by her resilience and how she approaches what is coming to her. We had a great conversation and I could easily relate about the worries and impact on the future and what could the “new normal” be.
The main difference between both of us is that, as described in Chapter 2, I came in hospital in a bad shape while she went for a routine blood test and learned she has an AML
It is indeed tough to be diagnosed when you feel you are doing great… it takes a toll when you are so young to realise your life will change drastically and you embark for a long journey to the unknown…
as we now learn in leadership training we need to realise we live in a VUCA World and being diagnosed with such an illness puts you straight in the middle of such an environment.
It made me happy to see the support she gets from friends, colleagues and family but mainly the attitude she genuinely displayed, I mean not faking to make people happy… I was in front of someone strong who will fight, clearly an inspiration!
To come back to my travel, I cannot resist to mention the fantastic restaurant we visited in Girona El Celler de Can Roca and I will put only one picture about this visit in this post…
You will be able to see a specific entry about this experience and yes it is J. Roca 🥳!
As the title of the post mentions, these months were also about Giving Back. The visit I mentioned is part of it but it is not all… I also organised with friends a wine tasting event to support a foster home in my local community and I am happy to mention that we will be able to make a substantial contribution to them!
This was a great feeling to help children needing support and so just with friends using our networks and get other friends helping on D Day to make it a success… It really gave me that warm feeling doing the right thing. Talking about network… I was also glad seeing friends coming from The Hague as well i.e. 300km from home and my local network visiting, buying and/or sponsoring. Great experience and enables to share a cool experience with close friends and strengthen the existing relationship!
I also kept working hard on my responsibilities in Rotary International as District 1600 and Club Youth Exchange Officer and support our club’s actions to support Salvadorian children, Polio eradication and also local communities…
This is basically the best way you can find to feel alive and useful to the society. I really recommend you to think about how you can help your community and this includes your work environment…
Indeed you can also give back at work by mentoring, coaching, caring and listening not only the new joiners but all colleagues you work with… you will see how quickly your environment can improve and also how the overall atmosphere can make your day-to-day life a better experience… Believe me you don’t need to get a cancer to start thinking about it even if for me it was the case 😉.
I keep hearing on regular basis “how can you do all this?”. I confirm that there is no miracle… I apply a set of principles to use my time as effectively as possible:
- Refuse status quo
- Trust your co-workers and organisation
- Sharpen your virtual work skills
- Manage your time to optimise your travel time
- Use technology to optimise “down or offline” time
- Schedule specific tasks that can be done offline to support optimisation
- Allow time to network wherever you are, an effective network enables better delegation
- Empower your network by making members accountability
These are the behaviors I try to live by for everything outside my family life…. I keep my private life out of that scope as it is necessary to retain your time with your family as a treasure to respect and this what provides the balance that allows you to contribute to your corporation and communities.
I truly hope I will be able to keep it up like this as I enjoy the diversity of my activities and giving back became an important part of my life!
Categories: AML