Happy monks in orange

Happy monks in orange

What a contrast... one day I am working with uber-serious investment bankers in London and the next I am in Southeast Asia, sitting at a meeting being led by a happy monk dressed in a bright orange robe, smiling and laughing, cracking jokes and quoting Buddha.

One of the things they always tell you as a disclaimer when you go away to do these things is 'don't expect it to be like home...it will be a slower pace than you're used to... it may take longer to get things done and be unpredictable...' Look, I get it - I get why they have to say this people. But they don't really need to say it to me, other than as a selling point. I hope it's different from home (that's why I bothered to get on a plane!). I welcome a slower pace (again, that's ideal - I'm not getting paid, remember?). And I'm fascinated by the differences - I suppose this is the reason that in the past few years, I can't seem to get enough of going to actually work in instead of tour other countries, whether it is paid or unpaid - for me it has proven to be the best way to break in and get to know the people and how things work. When I moved to London almost 4 years ago for my job, I realised that despite having lived in that city for 4 months (seriously, 4 months!) in my early 20s, I really didn't have a clue about England or English people until I came back 7 years later to work alongside them.

I have only had limited interactions with these people so far, but they seem to be a group of very gentle and kind-hearted people. And I really valued the refreshing genuineness in this comment from the monk who leads the organisation: in the presence of his management team of perhaps 10-15 other Cambodians, he welcomed me and thanked me multiple times for coming, and asked me to please be honest in developing recommendations as he knew there was room for improvement. He said that the good thing about their organisation is that everyone around the table has a good heart. But as Buddha says, we can't improve ourselves or others if we let the egos get in the way.

I had a lot of fun with the randomness of my first day with these people and I will likely never forget many of the small and funny moments, some of which were perhaps funny only to me, but funny nonetheless. Of course I didn't accomplish much in the way of 'transforming the finance and accounting department' - but I have hardly even developed relationships with these people yet. That is always the cornerstone for any sort of progress, however small... so first things first...

A few rules

There aren't many rules in the developing world. Probably one of the reasons I like it so much. But there are a few.

1. don't drink the water. I never struggle to remember the drinking part. But it does always escape me when brushing my teeth. When I lived in Guatemala I just told myself this was 'building the immunity system.' Someone recently freaked out on me about this so I decided to try to be better this time. Nope, not working... some habits die hard when there is a tap and a sink right in front of you.
2. take your shoes off before entering the building. This one is unique to Asia. I still haven't gotten used to this to be honest. Walking around at 'work' today barefoot felt ridiculous (and dusty). But, when in Rome...
3. there always seems to be one and only one rule to the road in these places.... if it's bigger than you, get out of the way. I had probably way too much fun today getting around this town on a bicycle amongst the motorbikes and cars and tuk tuks and just about anything else you can think of. It's comical to watch and even more comical to be in the middle of. I was thankful for all those years ago in Chicago when my former sidekick taught me this very crucial lesson about navigating traffic when you are on a bike (to be honest, it was more like a lecture, as I was going so slow he lost me): just like in life, if you second guess yourself or hesitate you're much more likely to get runover. The only way to ride a bike in traffic is to ride it as if you have a pair. (Sorry, but I think that is a direct quote from this person... and Mom, calm down, this is a small town - no one is going that fast, and I was wearing my seat belt I swear. It's way too hot to walk.)

Now, sometimes I see photos of people's travels and they look so magical I want to jump through the screen and transport myself there. So if you are anything like me and you are feeling like that idea sounds way better than sitting at your desk at work right now or whatever it is you are doing, do yourself a favor and picture me taking these photos drenched in sweat from head to toe (I'm not exaggerating), having to wipe it from my eyes to take a proper shot. Four years of mild summers has made me a wimp. There still isn't anywhere else I'd rather be, but... just trying to help.