Running out of idea for a title, eh?

By the way, this is what happened when you took a shower at the gym and carelessly put make up in a moving car. I guess I forgot to apply powder. Or maybe I applied too much CC cream. I didn't realize the white cast all over my face until after we took picture at the end of the interview. I was totally horrified when I saw it! Oh well, lesson learned :P







Last Thursday, I had the privilege to meet Melody, an intern at Forbes. We met at Female Daily HQ first  and then we walked to Casa for a cup of coffee. She's only been in town for a week, so I was surprised that she managed to arrive in the office effortlessly. Not only that, she also planned to visit Thamrin City by herself after the interview session.

She wanted to know more about Female Daily Network. The questions started with the usual stuff, how did it start and everything. But of course she wasn't hired at Forbes just to ask stuff that other journalists came up with so I was asked a few questions that made me stop for a minute to evaluate and reflect. It's interesting that she wanted to know if my management style has changed over the years, what are the challenges I find in managing the team, what have I done to upgrade everyone's skill and what qualities that I look for a new hire and many other things in regards to managing people and company culture.

In my own experience, among the many things I am responsible for, the biggest (and hardest) part of it is actually managing people. It's easier in the beginning when you have a small team and everyone is incheck with what's happening in the company and working toward the same direction.

When it gets bigger, new division is born, different level of position is formed, flow of communication changed, everything is more structured and new responsibilities and expectations cannot be avoided. Of course, people are expected to grow as the company grow. The earlier team no longer work on their own but they have their own team to manage and nurture. Everyone is expected to pick up her and his pace, upgrade themselves and be a leader. It's definitely a challenge to make sure that everyone is on the same page, that they know what they're doing and that they are making progress.

I used to romantize passion. Hiring for passion. But now I've learned that in the long run, hard work and willpower trumps talent.

There are many more I want to share here about this particular topic. But let's save it for another day. Anyway, I bumped into Melody after Garuda Vs Oranje game in SCBD. So happy for her to get so much out of the city for such a short period of time :)