I was just outside Barcelona hiking in the foothills of Mount Tibidabo. I was at the end of this path and I came to a clearing and there was a lake, very secluded. And there were tall trees all around. It was dead silent…
These are not my words, this is a story made up by Joey Tribbiani from the TV series Friends to get some girls to sleep with him. Any way, yesterday while walking the Paisseig de les Aigües on Mount Tibidabo my friends and I where remembering this episode and laugh for a while.
I also thought that it was time to write in this digital space again so I decided to share some learnings from my time here in Barcelona.
Embrace Change
Barcelona is a great city, not that big (well, compared to Mexico City, nothing is big) and not that small. Great weather, great mix of people, and a combination of three languages: Catalan, Spanish and English. Catalan for the local people, Spanish because it is part of Spain and English because it is full of people from other countries, not just visiting but living for a time of their lives, like me. And then you understand that Barcelona is an ever-changing city. Change makes the city breath and regain new strength every once in a while.
Everyone knows that change is the eternal state of being, but our human nature makes us settle down, driving the same road every day, drinking the same café cortado and living the continuous-boring routine every day. People like to get comfortable, why not? But comfortableness “is like wine, a little bit is OK” To fight routine, embracing change, and being conscious of it will make us more mobile and flexible. Accept change.
Be Competitive
For six months now I have entered classrooms with a mix of people of different backgrounds and countries: Germany, UK, Italy, Belgium, Guatemala, Mexico, Turkey, Venezuela, Panama, China, Russia, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Denmark, Sweden, Luxembourg, France, Serbia, Thailand & Portugal. The first thing you realise is that competition is fierce; be prepared to win because nobody is waiting for you.
As companies talk about sustainable competitive advantages, you should also think on yours. What activities are you doing that will build a better future for you? What makes you different from others? And better does not mean being rich, you will define what things are “better” for you, but do not forget to define them.
Learning is key to being competitive. Learn, as much as you can, take classes; take an online course, read books and analyze them. Study a master degree. Live in another country or in another city. Travel and learn from other people. Take as much as you can from others and then share it, sharing will make you understand what you have learned.
-But Steve Jobs dropped University- Yes, but he continued going to the campus to build connections, and continuously learn from other people.
Be Multidisciplinary
The education system is built on a single-path-focus for students. In Mexico, people attend college, specialize in a certain area, some then go to University, a small percentage studies a master degree and a smaller percentage studies a PHD. All studies normally follow the same area.
So, you want to be a Doctor, fine. A doctor won’t have a clue of P&L and Balance sheets, it’s OK, and it’s not his job to learn this in school. You want to be a Lawyer, excellent. What are the seven design principles? “I do not need that” it is for designers. True.
We are single-path-focused-system-created-individuals. This sucks. I studied Media & Communications and did not have a clue of any business related terms, so I decided to study Business. I learned a whole new world. Before this, I also had some studies in digital design, and man, this is so useful when doing presentations.
Whatever you have studied, it is always good to learn from other industries and cultures as well. Do not focus too much on one side of the brain; activate both. The brain will thank you later. Learn another language, it is never late (maybe you will take longer but do it). Learn to play an instrument. Learn some finance and understand numbers. Understand different ways of thinking.
Embrace change, be competitive and be multidisciplinary.