R.E.T.R.O. | Jun 2024

Resourceful • Event • Touch • Review • One

Resourceful

Confession time.

I used ChatGPT to help me write my performance review self-reflection.

While it couldn’t provide specific examples of the objectives I delivered in the past 6 months, it did offer an excellent outline of what I could write.

For example, in the question: What 1–2 things could you do to continue improving results and be even more effective?

I entered it to ChatGPT:

And ChatGPT responded:

What ChatGPT considers as items to work on to improve performance results.

From the list, I pick and choose the points that resonate with me the most, then rewrite the sentences in my own voice and add details relevant to my experiences.

Previously, I would spend days searching for and stringing together the perfect words to use, but now I cut that time in half and focus more on the ideas I want to convey.

Event

Volunteer work.

Over the June 22–23 weekend, I volunteered for the Concord Pacific Dragon Boat Festival, which took place at Vancouver’s False Creek.

Days earlier (June 20th) a pipe bursted and raw sewage flooded into the same Vancouver’s False Creek.

Health authorities did not recommend primary contact, such as swimming; but secondary contract such as the boating activities related to the dragon boating festival were within public health recommendations at this time…

I just hope it doesn’t smell.

This year there were giant screens showing a close up view of the race. I got to see some performances.

And was in the back sorting medals. The ribbons on the pride medals were the prettiest of the bunch.

I didn’t smell anything off.

Touch

You free?

Inviting someone to meet up is so much easier when there’s an event to attend together.

I like to say:

Hey [Name], are you free on [date] at [time] to check out this [event] with me? [link]

It’s a straightforward yes or no.
No need for rescheduling or postponing.

One event I’ve enjoy is the Free First Friday Nights at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Admission is free on the first Friday of every month. It’s a perfect excuse to hang out with friends and question your beliefs about art.

Review of a book

Book review.

One book I finished reading this month is Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know by Malcolm Gladwell.

Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the Peo…

I feel there are important lessons in this book that I want to print into my memory. And by writing about it, I hope those lessons will stick longer.

Table of contents from Malcolm Gladwell’s book “Talking to Strangers”

The book explores how we often misunderstand people we don’t know and how our interactions can go awry.

“Why can’t we tell when the stranger in front of us is lying to our face?”

It delves into the ways we misjudge others, the errors we make in interpreting their intentions, and the consequences of these misunderstandings.

“How is it that meeting a stranger can sometimes make us worse at making sense of that person than not meeting them?”

Key Themes by ChatGPT

In this book, Gladwell explores a few key themes and accompanies them with case studies.

THEME 1. Assumptions and Transparency: People tend to assume that strangers are transparent and that their words and actions provide clear insight into their true thoughts and intentions. Gladwell argues that this assumption often leads to significant misunderstandings.

• Amanda Knox: Her roommate was murdered. The Italian police and public assumed she was guilty based on her demeanour and outwardly suspicious behaviour. They misinterpreted her unusual actions and stress responses, leading to her wrongful conviction.
• Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler 1938: Chamberlain’s interactions with Hitler were based on the assumption that Hitler was transparent and honest about his intentions, leading to misguided appeasement policies where shortly Hitler reneged on his promises to respect the integrity of Czechoslovakia by invading what was left.

THEME 2. Default to Truth: Humans generally believe others are telling the truth, which can lead to misplaced trust. Gladwell uses the example of how people were able to deceive others for so long because people default to trusting what they are told.

• Bernie Madoff: Madoff’s Ponzi scheme succeeded because people defaulted to believing he was a trustworthy financier, even in the face of red flags and inconsistencies. To date, he pulled off the largest known Ponzi scheme in history, worth an estimated $65 billion.
• Larry Nassar: Nassar, a former gymnastics doctor, was able to sexually abuse numerous child athletes over many years because people trusted his professional reputation and did not question his actions.

THEME 3. Coupling: Context matters greatly in understanding behavior. Gladwell discusses how certain behaviors are coupled with particular circumstances and environments, suggesting that understanding the context is crucial to understanding actions.

• Sylvia Plath: Gladwell discusses how Plath’s suicide was coupled with the specific means she chose and the context of her life circumstances and personal history/background/beliefs, suggesting that understanding these factors is crucial to understanding her actions.
• Lawrence Sherman & the 1990s Kansas City Gun Experiment: Gladwell explores how crime rates are coupled with specific places and times, using the example of a high-crime area in Kansas City and the effects of focused policing.

THEME 4. Communication and Miscommunication: Cultural differences and non-verbal communication play a significant role in misunderstandings. Gladwell explores how different cultures communicate and how these differences can lead to serious misinterpretations.

• Sandra Bland: Miscommunication in tragic outcome. The interaction between Sandra Bland and the police officer escalated due to cultural and situational misunderstandings. It started as a minor traffic violation and ended with Bland’s death.

I gave this book 5 stars on Goodreads.

One treat

I call this bit “creative” writing.

Returning this season is the 2nd Annual Vancouver Ice Cream Festival!

Where many food spots are offering
limited-time
frozen treat
creations.

And with each creation you try, you get a sticker to enter the raffle draw.

But this is too many vendors.
And too much ice cream for your system.

So I decided to just pick One.

I went down the list.
Ate with my eyes.
And picked the one I wanted most to try.

With the Banana Milk Soft Serve Taiyaki, I also got a custard-filled Taiyaki; but I was too full and so tried to reheat it over a pan the next morning to eat.

I wanted to try the creation at Little Pisces.
The Taiyaki — a fish-shaped cake — looked cute.
I wanted a bite.

That was my One.

…

Whereas my friend.
In addition to ice cream.
Had tasted victory last year.

Problematic.

Because it’s now harder for them to just pick one 🤣