A Networking Exercise

The last week, Nayeli Valdés, published on her Facebook Wall an interesting state. So I gave her a like mark and all of a sudden I became a part of a practical virtual joke and a challenge that she send to  me. The exercise needed me to write one of 10 different quotes or questions in my own Facebook Wall and waited for the reactions of my friends.

This assignment made me the happily receiver of different answers, some messages to my cellphone and some phone calls drawing my attention because I was telling a little too much.

The interesting part of this exercise is the amount of people that are willing to collaborate with you at a virtual environment. The question that I publish was: How to you get rid of feet fungus? And I received, links, recipes and house remedies that may or may not work. I have to thank to all the people that take a minute of their times and offer an answer. Also I have to share that I didn't put in practise any advise because I'm not suffering from fungus neither my kids, because they told me to write this disclaimer.

Also I have to share with you that there were some comments that allow people to continue with the joke and tell me to cut off my feet or use some type of muriatic acid. The moment delivered me some laughs and it made me think that sometimes we are more interested in other people lives that are on the web and at some point we are willing to share more on this sites than in person.

A friend of mine, that by the way is a doctor, gave me a complete course of action on what to do and how to behave if I want to get rid of them permanently. Being optimistic, I get a free advise. Another good friend, share a video just to make sure I understand the instructions. 

So my recommendations to make this networking exercise:

1.- Do not take personal the information you share or receive, just have fun.

2.- Review the answers you are offered, some could be good tips, like my doctor friend advise.

3.- If you want to do the same exercise among your virtual friends, just write to me on the blog and I can share the different phrases you could use to have some fun.

Second Anniversary Networking

This week Networking Mindset is celebrating its second anniversary, and I want to thank all the people that take their time to read my opinions and do some comments about the suggestions I place in this space.

I won't make a brief about the blog statistics, because each year in December, the managing page does it for me. Although I want to make some insights about the way the writing objectives could be reached.

Originally the idea about writing this blog started as a "free hands" activity to loosen my writing abilities and reach some readers that weren't from the academic field. As I told you before, or some of you have read it, the last year I finished my PhD degree and I have to improve my writing skills.

Second point was to consider that creating a blog would make me choose a topic to always get in the center of the attention. So the themes I write about should be of my complete knowledge and practise in my every day activities. With this in mind I have not to do an extensive research, just let go my own experience and tell you about it.

Third I have to read other blogs, so I have an idea on what to do with a publishing space, I managed to understand that there were two types of blogs: the ones related to a trademark, for example apple, where the companies publish information related to their activity and use the space to tell the people about the new releases that are making. And the second case, the personal blogs, like mine, where you can write about almost anything only to have other people know about your personal experiences.

So I decided this blog theme, when I realized about the activity I made almost everyday in my personal and professional life. Everything else relates to a personal commitment, interest, and some issues about leaving a legacy for the posterity. Of course I don't know what will happen with this Blog through the years, in the meantime, I have a great time sharing with you my life and getting back your comments.

After this two years telling you about events and networking, I want to thank your comments, your personal messages and your opinions about what I write. Some of you go further and ask me to write about some particular events and the most courageous write in your behalf your own experiences about your personal networking. I hope this experiment will last for some more years, and that we find different ways to achieve a Networking Mindset.

THANK YOU!!!!!

Engagement Networking

I think the posts about tips for dating have a big audience among women. Specially because there are some girls that ask me to publish the and wait that their guys read this lines and apply some of this behaviors.

Following this lines, one of my readers ask me to write about some suggestions for her prince charming, so he can have an idea on how he should ask her to be his wife. Hope that his boyfriend read my opinion, and that my advise is about for some help.

Aspects to consider:

a) The ring delivery, it should be as public or private as you want, but it is important that your girlfriend, if she says yes, will publish it on every social network she has: Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, Whatsapp, Twitter, among others.

b) Considering the currently wedding standards, there are some girls that have waited nearly for 30 years to receive the proposal. They have recreated the moment a thousand times, and of course they are waiting that their boyfriend understands it, so he should put all the attention and imagination that is on his reach to this event.

c) The boyfriend should understand that as for this moment, all the attention will be centered in the bride, the ring delivery, the asking for the hand, the bachelor party, the wedding, the post wedding. So, and even the girl do not clearly say it, she expects to be the most understood Bridezilla in the whole history, and he should understand her. It's until the honey moon when the groom has back some of the attention.

d) It's important that the boyfriend study some aspects related to the ring acquisition. He should know about the type of ring, stone, material and design that her girlfriend will like to have. There are a lot of tests in Internet about them, but my suggestion is that you should ask the girl or talk about it with a professional.

The next link has some tips from Brides magazine that you may read to select the ring:

Como elegir el anillo de compromiso

e) And because we are talking about the ring delivery, you have to know quite well to your girlfriend to understand the type of event she expects to have, something really public, like a stadium, mall, movies or something really private, in the beach, mountain or a restaurant. You should investigate if she like to have her family or friends among her. And of course I will suggest that you ask to her friends and use your common sense.... It hasn't be an expensive event, it should be something she will cherish in her heart forever.

At the end of this post you  may find the most voted engagement proposal for 2015, for sure you will find some more inspiration at the social network.

Tell us, what else you need for her to say yes? We gladly receive your comments

Networking Dating Tips 2

Earlier this year I wrote about my friend Hitch tips to get a great come out to a first date. I had a lot of comments about it and now I like to share Carrie Tips. She had 2 bad dates with a guy, and she gave him a third and last opportunity.

Theme 1: If you want to date a girl, do not use adjectives such as: "Vanilla", "Square", "Vain". She could behave as cold and distant she likes, and if you want her, you should make an effort to convince to date you, if you use this words describing her, probably she will apply them and won't go out with you.

Theme 2: Do not speak about the personal "days" of the woman, if your mother, colleagues, neighbor or any other woman share with you this information, you shouldn't repeat it with your girl. She will go to her friends and then share your conversation, of course you don't want to give her and her friends this impression.

Theme 3: You invited her out, and she as a complete lady, will dress up and use high heels, consider this condition and do not make her walk around a parking lot searching for your car. The gentlemen way should be to ask her wait for you at the door and go for the car and pick her up where you left her.

Theme 4: You invited her to dine, movies, bowls or any other place, for sure you will get some food and she will accept it, and then probably she will not finish everything. Do not take out her meal: popcorn, hot dog, desert, or whatever she didn't finish. Eventually she will go back to the food and you don't want to be known as the guy that finished her food.

Theme 5: If you went out, there is a possibility to go to the restroom. Do not let her waiting for you more than 30 minutes. She will be out of the toilet in no more than 15, and you have to consider that women services always have a waiting line.

Theme 6: If you went to a concert, and waiting to start, offer yourself to get some water or food, do not wait until she offers, but if it happens, and she offer to get the water, do not let her go and buy the food.

Theme 7: Remember this tips are for you to get a third date, so you have been pressing a little to get her say yes. So you convince her and at some point she offers to pay the bill, do not allow her, remember that you have some trouble to go out with her, you have to make her feel special.

Theme 8: Do not force the physical contact, if the things go well eventually you may approach her. But if she do not want, you have to read the signs, if you take her hand, she will lose up, if you hug her she will get apart.

Theme 9: If you invite her to a trip, do not ask her to pay for the plane ticket. My friend received the following message: "Carrie, lets go to the beach this weekend, can you pay for the tickets?" It was the second date and she will not accept the deal.

Theme 10: If you are asking her out for an event that starts before 10:00pm, invite her to a dinner after, so you may avoid eating her popcorn at the middle of the movie.

Of course you have to notice first if there is some chemistry between you and may skip some of this tips, but if things are not working maybe you are doing some of this mistakes and my recommendation is that you work on them to get the fourth date.

Carrie had her third date, but the gentlemen did 8 of the past 10 bad things, she won't go out with him again.

Fellow Networking

On the last days Mexico City was in an environmental contingency, this mean that some activities should be done to avoid sending more pollution to the atmosphere and stop the higher levels of it.

The measure that affected personally was the "hoy no circula" (One day without a car). Here you can do some preventions for always keep circulating, but in this case, the full law was applied, and the authorities asked for some citizenship considerations to support the measures and assure to lower the pollution levels. 

I suppose that this measures make some other people in this city to change their regular activities. But some of them do not change, I want to share some of this practises, that I consider the lowest level of networking for your fellows:

The way some people move poultry, shows a lack of hygienic measures, this can cause disease transmission of any type. The weirdest thing is that the police can see this type of pickups on the streets and do not do anything about it.

The contingency day, at least you couldn't see this vans, but just the alert was taken away, you could see the people doing this practises again.

Maybe this things are done, because the way a lot of people sell and buy products here, at the rolling markets. I don't know much about the way people move fruits, vegetables, cheeses or meats to this places. I just observe the way this products are offered. Me and my kids have seen that aren't placed at any type of refrigeration features. I believe this products could be kept at outdoor temperature, this couldn't be done at my hometown, anything could be kept this way, or you could be intoxicated.

Other type of activity was the coconut transportation, here the picture of the most "original" one:

I'm not sure if this practise is safe, the coconuts could fall down the car, may hit a passerby, hit another vehicle or just land in the middle of the street. I believe that there should be a correct procedure to move them without putting in risk other people.

So I share a thought to avoid annoying your fellows and generate a positive networking.

1.- In contingency alert, avoid running your car among the streets, give a positive example to your family, and use the public transportation: bus, subway. It will always be easier to continue doing your traditional practises that adapt yourself to a new way of life, but I recommend to do the effort for your community well being.

2.- If your are going to move meat, poultry or any other perishable item, use the right means to do it, closed trucks with fridge or cooler systems. Avoid transporting this foods on an outdoor van. Avoid environmental pollution and the disease transmission.

3.- If you are going to move other type of food, use the security measures that avoid accidents to your fellow passersby. Think of how mad you will get if a coconut hits your head.

Alert Networking

The past week the wind blew in Mexico City, and the alarms went on among different public places; one of them was the university where I work. When we were at the lunch break some canvas flew away and the sports field had some troubles, the security personnel ask us to keep inside the buildings and away from windows or possible flying objects.

Once the people and students were safe, the next request was that everybody has to leave the campus and stop activities for the day. The physical evaluation of the university lead to this activity. So I gather my team and ask them to take their laptops and go directly home. Taking the laptops with them will allow to continue their activities at home and preventing that the alert continues the next day so they could make home office.

Once the strategy was made, we say farewell and also requested the information on each team member arrival to home, so everyone could be sure that we were fine.

Almost everything was going quite well, but at the time I wanted to contact my son Mauricio, I couldn't reach him, the lines were saturated, there was no Whats app service, Internet drop down, I couldn't reach him by messenger, I couldn't communicate with him and give some instructions.

Once I arrive to my car, I found out that he wasn't there and I didn't have a clue if he decided to take a bus to go home, or if he was still at a classroom waiting for me to pick up him. I try for 15 more minutes until I have luck and reach him by phone, he still was at his high school waiting for a parent to pick him up or to a bus arrival. So I asked him to move to our car and he gave his teachers this information.

The next activity was to make contact with Arturo, the second of my sons. It's important to let you know that he has school transport and he has to be delivered to our house. So it wasn't that difficult to find him and ask him that he should not leave the house until we were all together.

This alert made me think about the little training my family has to react to this type of alerts. Where do we have to meet? What to expect the other will do? What to do if communications fail? How long wait to look for each other?

With this learning, I can give you some recommendations to allow the networking in alert states:

1.- Make a plan with your family taking in account your familiar places, the communications you have, time you have to wait for communicate, act in consequence. Of course you have to consider your son's ages and give them responsibilities according to them.

2.- Show some empathy with your team, ask them if they have trouble to move, or if their homes could be in warning zones.

3.- Be sure to prepare a communication line that allow you to know how everybody is doing.

4.- Remember to keep calm, you will achieve nothing by preoccupation.

5.- Make yourself useful by doing some actions that keep you safe and your love ones.

Concert Networking

Maroon 5 was at our city and furthermore that I'm a big fan, I couldn't help to tell you about my experience. I bought the tickets since last September, so this event was planned for about 6 months and as you may imagine, waiting for so long makes higher the expectations. So I had to do a little research so I can arrive on time to the place.

The total capacity of the Foro Sol is 55,000 people, as I could prove there should be that amount of people at that place, so we had 2 options, take the subway or take a taxi. My friends decided to take a cab, I think the next time we should consider better the first option, since we had a 2.5 hour ride. Of course you have to visualize the 55,000 people trying to get to the same place at about the same hour.

The show lasted just 1.5 hours, that was disappointing. I had waited for six months for a show of 1.5 hours? Whatever, Maroon 5 and specially Adam Levine, make a real show with their songs and the scenery. I realized that my research produce benefits because I knew all the songs, that was the best part of preparing for so much time. Personally I would like that the group had more interaction with the audience, but they perform their songs really well, and that was objective of this concert.

 

The interesting thing that happened to us at the concert was with a group of girls that were sited in front of us. When the concert started, the girls went up to their chairs, obstructing completely the stage and the screens. I had to tell them to get down so the rest of the people could watch the show. They went down and didn't get up again, so anyone had to copy that bad practice, at least in the spot we were sited.

So I share my recommendations for going on concerts:

1.- Organize with your friends, even better if you have the same taste, you will have fun.

2.- Seize the opportunity and meet before the event in a close location so you can have fun a before, during and after the concert.

3.- Do not allow other people mess up with your experience, tell them in a good way that everybody has the opportunity to have a good time and you will get some cooperation.