big hat no cattle

I feel like a man who has a "big hat and no cattle" today, particularly as I am unable to instruct those people who I can't subtly persuade to get things done, and it's proving to be very frustrating.

I report into an Australian (unfortunately he is on leave for a couple of weeks), a great guy and we've got a very good rapport. Rapport within this business, is not as common as you think simply because it requires more than finding two people who can relate to each other or to a specific subject but because it requires some effort to talk about things other than work.

I spent five weeks in Sydney in 2000, so I am fortunate enough to understand some of the Aussie psyche as well as their use of diction. A typical Aussie would say: "pass-ter" and not "pusta," without any embarrassment, they would want to know "how are you going?" and would not expect for you to reply, "By train," but that all is well.

In an organisation that has over 100 000 employees spanning the globe, building this type of rapport by casually leaning on my previous experiences has allowed me to short circuit and in many instances circumvent a whole host of issues.

So a life outside of big-bad-oil-and-gas is important.

Cultivating interests and your ability to translate those interests, will often be the grease that helps keep the big machine running. I spend a fair amount of time, which some people may consider to be doing nothing, relating interests and eventually building rapport. It's probably the most satisfying aspect of the job but yet it may be the most frowned upon.

Our office has pause areas; a canteen; we are even encouraged to msn but it probably still equates to time wasting - so hurrah for time wasting, at least I know how to order Italian, Down-Under.