stumped by strunk

i guess strunk & white's exhortations on keeping composition simple & concise has made me less competitive in the work force.

while it is good communication to keep ideas concise, it is weak p.r. if you can't accurately describe your accomplishments, or worse, downplay the accomplishments. perpetual case in point: i've been working on this excel worksheet for a couple of days now (if not weeks) and when asked about its progress, i can succintly say it in less than 3 sentences.

the problem is that i often go through extremes. if i begin to explain, dang, i usually end up blabbering my head off. unfortunately, in the corporate world, being too brief would look like you weren't really doing anything at all. couple it with extreme wordiness, you're making bola na (even if you've only expounded a point).

it's especially a problem if you're writing a resume for internal use. for jobhunters/prospective clients, you can pepper your resume with all kinds of bola, as seen from the following examples:

1. coordinated with various project leaders on the development of the project = sent YM to the project leaders on when they'll submit so-and-so document.
2. proposed solution that would integrate the financial & materials systems = after hours of coffee with sleepy coworkers, mumbled something off the top of your head. notice it said "proposed," not "implemented" the solution.
3. drafted process flow integrating services & financial systems = drew a dinky flowchart using Visio, based on previous documentation.

i could go on and on. unfortunately, if the resume's for internal use, your boss knows what you've done, so you're pressured to come clean.

this is what i get for being too honest for my own good... he3x! :P

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muscle misfortunes

i've started going to the gym recently as part of the company's program. so as not to fall into the trap of laziness, i opted to go to the gym in the mornings.

since i'm naturally a nocturnal person, it's weird that i still mispack my work stuff the night before i go to the gym. maybe it's because of clicking the channels after conan, trying to see if the cable guys brought back wowow.... he3x! :P

anyhoo, something usually goes wrong whenever i pack my stuff. once, i forgot to bring an undershirt for my work shirt. it didn't show, but i felt all uncomfortable inside (call it mild OC). another time, i had already went past the gate when i realized i forgot my work clothes at home, so i had to drive back. still another time, i left my keys inside the bag after suiting up. when the group went out to lunch, i forgot to bring my keys out of the bag. as a result, all three of us were locked out of the office, with me the supposedly responsible one missing the keys. (i will not try to explain what the excuse of the other people in the group were.) ;)

gym sickness? lack of sleep? or just plain befuddledness? your call @-)

first firing

this was my comment from vivaglam's blog on having a province; i might as well start my own blog:

i guess that's the inevitability of becoming more urbane, more cosmopolitan: recognizing one's own roots start here in the metro.

my dad would always bring us to batangas every other weekend ever since i was born. this is where he grew up, where he fetched grass for the carabaos, where he had his hijinks w/ his playmates. no matter how many times he brought us back, this provincial place would always be "dad's place," not "home." because home is where there's airconditioning, where there's a tv, where there's ready access to quad/glorietta.

quite a number of articles have been written about going back to the province and wishing for a simpler life, yet i can't relate. it's because i've seen some of the lives they live, and it's not for me. going to batangas is going to exile. even with cellphones, even if phone lines are put up, even if a mall would be nearby, as long as it doesn't look urban, it's not right for me.

we have our own house built in dad's place less than 5 years ago, after living in government quarters for so long. yet, i still can't bring myself to call that new house my home, probably because we still live in the quarters in the metro. when i grow older, i don't know if i can bring myself to live there for good. i don't have to, but to leave that beautiful house alone would be such a terrible waste.

home for me would always be the hustle & bustle of city life. i relish every moment that the city fills my senses with activity, and i bemoan my boredom everytime i go to the tranquility that is my dad's place.

i really should get my own blog... no, wait, i should get back to work!!! 8-}

no, wait, i did! he3x! here's my first post! :D