Finding Fantastic in a Faraway Land

I didn’t have to dig too far to unearth this story about the experience of a US-based Kronos employee working with our team in China, one of over 100 countries where Kronos provides workforce management products and services. Barry Plautz is a Technical Account Manager providing the highest level of advocacy, guidance, and support as a dedicated resource for customers that require exceptional technical expertise and analysis on stuff I don’t understand like JBoss Heap Dump, Verbose GC, Log Trace, and Browser Trace. Barry’s observations are honest, and when you consider what’s going on in the world today between people with differences, I find his simple advice profound.

Barry with some members of our China team.

By Barry Plautz

I had an opportunity to travel to China and work with the incredible people in our Beijing office. At first I was worried about so many things. Travel arrangements, hotels, meals and the daily routine. The good people in the China offices saw to it that I would have everything I needed for my stay which put my mind at ease – somewhat. I still had concerns about communication. I have no Chinese language skills whatsoever. Attempting to repeat even a simple Mandarin phrase has proven to be more challenging than I expected. Just learning everyone’s name was a feat in itself. The sounds are all new and so different from what I was used to. I was a foreigner in a faraway land, completely outside of my comfort zone.

I did not know what to expect from the people that I would be working with. The only Chinese people I have ever been exposed to before were mainly those portrayed in movies and television. Much of that was stereotypes and derogatory misrepresentations. As a person who has limited foreign travel experience, I was at a disadvantage mentally having been equipped with such a limited amount of exposure. After a while in Beijing I started to see things more clearly. I noticed little things at first, then so much more.
I noticed that people are different yet so much alike. All the faces were unfamiliar yet I found their personality to be warm and comfortable. Sometimes, when you see a person, you immediately think you know something about them based on how you perceive their appearance. This is generally due to a natural tendency to compare that person to another from your past with similar physical attributes. When you travel abroad you have the opportunity to dismiss that tendency and form a fresh new perception. When you allow yourself to truly see a new person without bias or preconception, you discover what’s really important.

You start to see that people can be absolutely brilliant, remarkable, caring, thoughtful, surprising, fantastic, incredible, and sometimes indescribable. Then you finally understand that no matter how different we seem to each other at first, we are all very much alike. I found we share the same work ethic, family values, dreams and personal aspirations. In all the ways that truly matter, we are all alike. That is when you realize that the world is a much smaller place than you previously thought. You understand that you can travel to the far reaches of this planet and meet people who could just as easily have been living right next door your entire life.

It is an awakening that only occurs if you open your mind to new possibilities and experiences. Be bold and daring. Be willing to explore new things. Be adventurous and accepting of challenges that come your way and look for opportunities to expand your understanding of the people in the world around you. Whether you are traveling internationally, domestically, or simply meeting someone new for the first time, give yourself the opportunity to discover that person for who they truly are. Look for their positive traits and recognize their talents and ambitions. In doing so, you also will discover new things about yourself. You too will become wiser and somewhat more remarkable. If you are given a choice to be mundane or remarkable, which would you select? It is a simple question. Think about that question often, and then choose. Be remarkable. It will change your life.