Thursday, September 9, 2010
Cranium Booster: A woman named Madam Fei!
Cranium Booster: A woman named Madam Fei!: "Image via WikipediaDay Thirty Eight, It was a relatively easy feat for Buzzwordy to submit his project re-prioritization proposal to Xa..."
A woman named Madam Fei!
Image via WikipediaIt was a relatively easy feat for Buzzwordy to submit his project re-prioritization proposal to Xavia - a self-explanatory Microsoft Excel worksheet was all that he needed to provide to his boss.
He knew that Xavia would have no questions for him - he would simply take a quick look at the worksheet before forwarding the file to Bif. However, the situation could be totally different with his ill-tempered CEO. Bif could easily say nothing or blow up and threaten to turn him into a pretzel. Nonetheless, Buzzwordy was ready for whatever the outcome would be.
"Buzzwordy, I did have a chance to review your proposal early this morning. It looked OK!" said Xavia when he first saw Buzzwordy walking into the office.
Buzzwordy nodded his head but did not bother to say anything to his boss. Both of them knew that Bif was the judge of everything, and Xavia was merely the traffic cop in this project communication loop.
"Fine, I'll submit your proposal to Bif now and see what the man wants to do with it!" exclaimed Xavia.
The morning went by peacefully and Buzzwordy felt blessed that he was able to catch up with all of his emails and voice mails. Bif did not even call on him or Xavia during the lunch hour. He got a hunch that something wicked was percolating and a calm before the storm crisis would hit him anytime.
"Buzzwordy, why don't you and Xavia stop by my office now!" requested Bif in a somewhat feeble voice.
"OK Bif!" replied Buzzwordy while reminding himself that something bad was troubling Bif.
"Come in you two, please have a seat!" greeted Bif with a reluctant smile on his face.
Neither Xavia nor Buzzwordy said anything - they gave each other a quick look before turning their undivided attention to their CEO.
"Guys, thanks for putting the proposal together for me. It looked great! Needless to say, the marketing whiz kid truly lived up to my expectation. As I mentioned to Xavia a few days ago, I wanted Buzzwordy to accompany me on my upcoming China trip. Why did I ask him to go, any idea?" asked Bif engagingly.
Again, neither Buzzwordy nor Xavia responded.
"Look guys, I know that Buzzwordy is somewhat eccentric but he manages to get the job done. In my opinion, he will be the perfect person to attend my meeting with this Chinese company. He could really run circles around these guys in Shenzhen!" explained Bif.
"Bif, what kind of meeting is this?" interrogated Buzzwordy.
"All I can tell you is that it will be a very tough price negotiation meeting with these people. I heard that they will be sending one of their best negotiators to this meeting. A woman named Madame Fei!" said Bif.
"Any preparation required before you depart for China Bif?" asked both Xavia and Buzzwordy at the same time.
"Guys, all I need is Buzzwordy! Just make sure that my marketing whiz kid shows up at the Cathay Pacific ticket counter on Saturday afternoon. This meeting is now adjourned." responded Bif.
"Xavia, have you ever heard of Madam Fei before?" inquired Buzzwordy sheepishly.
"No, but she is your headache now!" laughed Xavia.
Looks like Day Thirty Nine will be a travel day for Buzzwordy.
Buzzwordy
Note from Buzzwordy
If you enjoy reading the Cranium Booster - Buzzwordy tales, why not spread the words and share them with your friends and family. Everyone deserves a good laugh and so do you. Just send them this link so they can sign up for free.
http://buzzwordy-craniumbooster.blogspot.com/
Questions
If you are interested in contributing to Cranium Booster-Buzzwordy, please send an email to gwu@buzzwordy.com
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Why do I have to go anyway?
Image by Cappellmeister via FlickrDay Thirty Seven,
It was crystal clear to Buzzwordy that both Bif and Xavia could care less about how he felt. His years of contribution did not matter much to them. He was their walking and talking marketing star, the whiz kid who could make things happened, and the garbage man when things really got out of hand.
He could still recollect the time when he singlehandedly picked up a large purchase order from a hard-to-crack account and plonked it right on top of Xavia's desk. His boss grabbed the purchase order, stared at the dollar figure and purchased volume, and uttered the same lame response like "Not bad, you've just saved yourself from Bif's merciless ax!". Buzzwordy's usual response had always been a gentle chuckle, a mild grin, and a steadfast walk away from Xavia's office to signal that he was ready for another challenge again.
The funny thing was that Buzzwordy never complained much because he was so into his work, so focused on hitting the chord on every assignment, and so proud of himself for being the guy who could deliver the goods.
"Xavia, I don't really care what Bif thinks! I want to speak to him now!" insisted Buzzwordy.
"Buzzwordy, listen to me! Get your project done by tomorrow. Bif is tied up with something at this moment. If you storm into his office now, he will rip your head off!" shouted Xavia.
Buzzwordy did not respond to Xavia at all. He simply tilted his head and gave his boss a really cold stare before walking back to his office.
"Did you hear me Buzzwordy?" screamed Xavia nervously.
"You will have your project completed by tomorrow!" blurted Buzzwordy.
The project re-prioritization task did not consume much of Buzzwordy's time. Using his unique sorting technique, he was done before he knew it. Based on his proven method, Buzzwordy managed to come up with the following results,
- Bif's pile - 45
- Red alert = 30
- Amber alert = 12
- Yellow alert = 3
- Xavia's pile - 32
- Red alert = 16
- Amber alert = 10
- Yellow alert = 6
- Other's pile - 12
- Red alert = 12
Needless to say, there must be some tough issues awaiting him in China. Buzzwordy knew it well because Bif couldn't stand traveling with him. This love and hate relationship with Bif was a never ending one for him.
He still remembered the time when his ill-tempered CEO misspoke about the functionality of one of the company's widgets - he had to literally jump right into the middle of Bif's presentation and rescue him from embarrassing himself. He saw Petro and the other editors smirking and giggling at the back of the conference room. Nonetheless, he knew that he took the right action to safeguard his company from Bif's amateurish foul play.
"Why is Bif keeping his China trip a top secret from him? Why do I have to go anyway? Why isn't Xavia requested to go instead?" puzzled Buzzwordy.
Lets see if he will get his answer on Day Thirty Eight.
Buzzwordy
Monday, September 6, 2010
You got to play by the rule, Bif's rule!
Image by geminder via FlickrSappy's work was incredible. Buzzwordy could tell that this old marketing geyser had put in a long and painful night jamming on this critical project for Xavia. He managed to capture all the ongoing and newly initiated projects, large and small, and break them all down into manageable portions. This quiet and reserved guy fully deserved a pat on the back from everyone on the team.
"Sappy, let me say this to you! You have always lived up to your reputation. How on earth could you get this done within one evening? I got to hand this to you. Frankly, I'm impressed!" praised Buzzwordy as he reached over to hug Sappy.
"Well Buzzwordy, the main difference between you and I is what I call the REWARD/HEARTBURN RATIO! I don't get the spotlights or headaches like you do, however, I have plenty of time to prepare things. You need to understand one thing, travel for business really takes a toll on your body and soul!" chuckled Sappy.
"But Sappy, don't you get any satisfaction from your work?" inquired Buzzwordy.
"You bet! Plenty of it! I keep myself away from the spotlight, the media attention, the board room drama, the complaints, the occasional accolade, and the list goes on and on! What I get in return is a simple work life that allows me time to think, to prepare, to organize, to travel, to learn the right nutrients for my body, to simply stay sane, and again, the list goes on and on!" said the excited Sappy.
"Well Sappy, good points! I always think that in order to become a great marketer, a person must have all the required traits. You know what I'm talking about right? The traits that require you to learn how to golf, to dance, to perform wine tasting, to walk and talk in a certain way, to shake someone's hand in a certain way, to brag about the car, to tout about the vacation home, to mention the weekend boat, ... etc. I guess that my stereotypical thinking is not right!" confessed Buzzwordy.
Sappy handed his work over to Buzzwordy, gave him a military salutation, and excused himself. For the next 24 hours, it would be Buzzwordy's turn to prioritize all the projects. Over the years, he had managed to come up with this neat little technique to help him sift through complexities and re-prioritize them at a speed that was faster than Speedy Gonzales. His technique was simple - he divided all the projects into three piles and named them,
- Bif's pile = 5 stars in terms of importance
- Xavia's pile = 4 stars in terms of importance
- Other's pile = 3 stars and below in terms of importance
Sticking to this rule had helped Buzzwordy meet numerous project deadlines in the past. Once again, he was going to implement his technique on this urgent project.
"Buzzwordy, I just met with Bif and he wanted you to go to China with him this weekend." announced Xavia as he made a surprise visit to Buzzwordy's office.
"What about your urgent project?" asked Buzzwordy annoyingly.
"You have 24 hours to complete it. Plenty of time!" said Xavia in a neutral tone.
"I want to talk to Bif now. This is ridiculous Xavia! Why do I have to go to China with him?" responded the aggravated Buzzwordy.
"You got to play by the rule, Bif's rule!" shouted Xavia.
I shall return on Day Thirty Seven.
Buzzwordy
Note from Buzzwordy
If you enjoy reading the Cranium Booster - Buzzwordy tales, why not spread the words and share them with your friends and family. Everyone deserves a good laugh and so do you. Just send them this link so they can sign up for free.
http://buzzwordy-craniumbooster.blogspot.com/
Questions
If you are interested in contributing to Cranium Booster-Buzzwordy, please send an email to gwu@buzzwordy.com.
http://clickserve.cc-dt.com/link/click?lid=41000000032608263
http://gan.doubleclick.net/gan_click?lid=41000000027962808&pubid=21000000000299507
http://gan.doubleclick.net/gan_click?lid=41000000030694232&pubid=21000000000299507
http://gan.doubleclick.net/gan_click?lid=41000000000102866&pubid=21000000000299507
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)