Diversity and ME!

Diversity is a lost art and one that seems to be losing its allure lately. In the recent past it was considered and asset if you were a diverse individual with a varied skill set. It seems like these days however people are looking more for people who have a talent or a skill in one area. I can see the draw this might have, but I would take someone with a diverse skill set any day over a one trick pony.

 

Diversity - It Brings You More!

When I managed the warehouse for Webvan years ago I ran an inventory committee. I needed to develop a new cycle count system for over 50,000 products. Because the work load once the system was designed would be heavy, we decided to bring in a few more people and build an inventory team. While we were doing this I had one of my first encounters with your typical "entry level" warehouse worker. These were your typical pick and pack type staff and none of them had any impressive talents or skills. At least none that we could see.

My point is this. We trained these people to do one thing and one thing only, to take inventory. We trained them on the system I developed and for about 6 months or so that is all they did. The company (and I) realized how much of an issue this was only when we were going through our final couple of months during the company closing. Upper management was instructed by the CEO to drop staffing by nearly 80% and to use the remaining 20% to run the large list of things that needed to be done in order to close down the company, warehouse, and materials.

When this was first starting I picked 2 of the best inventory team members to remain on and help with final counts and whatever else came up. As the days went on more and more started getting dropped onto my plate and that of everyone else as well. There was always something that needed to be done and no one to do it. This was fine for me as I was able to handle much of what I needed to do because I have always been a very diversely skilled individual. For the others however, it was a much more difficult undertaking.

The two remaining inventory team members we came to find were actually incapable of doing absolutely anything except counting. It might seem a bit like an exaggeration but these two guys literally had a hard time doing anything around the warehouse that they were not specifically trained for. Now I know that generally people should have some common sense and understand simple instructions, but these two must have been aliens because they did not understand anything. And these were supposed to be the best out of the 9 person staff.

Diversity is a huge asset in the business world. When you have someone who knows how to do more than one thing and can adapt to various situations easily because of their past experiences, you have someone that you should do whatever you can do to keep on the payroll. Ever since this experience I made absolutely sure that I learned as much as I could about anything I could no matter where I worked. When I worked for a fire sprinkler supply company, I learned everything that I could about the products, how they were made, why they do what they do, and how to install, operate, and fix nearly everything that we sold.

The same applied to every job I have ever held during my working career. From selling high performance motorcycle chains and sprockets to a convenience store supply company. I figured the more I can learn about everything the better off I will be. This was also the case for things that I did on my own time as well. Being involved with computers my entire life I taught myself everything about them. How they work, how to fix them, I learned about all the various parts and how they work. I learned almost everything there is to know about computers and other electronic devices. After doing that for more than 25 years it is safe to say that I know a lot about computers.

Where Does This Take Me and What Does The Future Hold?

I'm not too sure what to do moving forward. Of course I have certain dreams and aspirations. None of these are going to help me make any money in the present time. Just like the rest of the country I am in a position that dictates I need to make money NOW. I have a family to care for. My wife and my three children depend on me to bring in a certain amount of income and that has not been happening lately. I have been making some money but it is not anywhere near the amount that I need.

As it stands now I will most likely be forced to find a job somewhere in retail just to bring in some immediate income. Not what I would prefer but what choice does one have. I have been trying to use my writing as a source of income but there just has not been enough of that work to go around. I have been trying to use my various skills to develop a business or resurrect my computer and network repair business but it just has not taken off fast enough to make a difference.

This is actually one of the few times that I have gotten entirely personal in one of my blog posts. Honestly, I am not sure where I am even going with this post. What I aim to accomplish or what I hope to gain from writing this and sharing it with the world. Or at least the small portion of it that pays attention to this site. I will continue to march on and strive to make the most out of every opportunity I am given. I am getting older though and the physical aspect of my career is at an end. It's kinda sad though because I am just approaching 40 yet I feel like I am coming on 60!

I Can Hope.....

I did not have a normal upbringing in the sense of what a typical "suburban" family is. Of course, I was not raised in the 'burbs. I grew up in Chicago and that part of my personal history adds to my diversity. Street smarts is not something that can be taught or learned from a book. So I am extremely grateful for my time living in the city. I learned a great deal. About myself mostly, but others too.

What I mean is that my parents did not force me to stay on the high school football team when I wanted to quite because the coach wanted me to cut my hair. They did not make me go to college, nor did they even talk about that as something that should be a goal of mine. So growing up I was left to make my own mistakes, and I made a few. Unfortunately I am still dealing with the effects of some of those mistakes now - like the fallout of having credit at the age of 16!

So I make sure that my kids have better parents than I did and that they will NOT make the same mistakes. No matter what I will not let them make my mistakes! So I need to continue moving forward and do everything that I can to make sure they continue to have the things that I did not have. That I can do.

I always try to look on the positive side of things. While I am a realist, I still try to remain positive. I do not think it does anybody any good to dwell on the negative. That does not mean that I ignore the negative, no. Not at all. The negative is there and it is real. You have to beware and be prepared. But at the same time if I let it get me down then I cannot make it to the positive aspect of reality. That is what I strive for, to reach the positive aspect of things. Everything has a positive side.

That is where my hope comes from. I hope that I can find a way to bring in more money. I hope my kids continue to get the spectacular grades that they have been. I hope my son continues to plays sports and continues to be a stand out star. I hope my wife continues to love me (this should be possible as long as I remain me). I hope that one of my business ideas or projects takes off. I hope my daughters continue to make the right choices in life. I hope that I am able to finish writing my book, and then write another.

I could go on and on with the things that I hope will come to fruition, but I have to end this sometime. I am happy that I have this blog with which to express my thoughts and feelings sometimes. I am not sure what made me get so personal tonight, but I did. I will continue to provide the followers that I do have with the diversity of content that I have to this point. I have a lot to share so I only hope that I have interested people to share it with. My diversity seems to have no bounds so I will continue to share it with everyone.

Thank you!