So what is it like to be a consultant in Kabul working on civil service management reform? Quite frankly, it is a unique experience that is extremely difficult to share with anyone who has not visited the country. That is just the way it is. Regardless, I thought I would at least attempt to frame the experiences for you.
My day begins with a scan of security alerts sent by email or text messaging. If all is “normal” there is a quick exchange of agendas between colleagues and off we go across roundabouts, traffic jams and local crowds. What follows is always filled with surprises and the most fantastic situations. At the end of the day, you can always count on one thing: you will learn more from your experiences than your client will learn from you. That is just the way it is.
Here are two of my most recent lessons:
· Waiting to meet a senior executive, I was sitting in an office filled with large sofas. Lounging across from me was a local heavy set man looking at me curiously. He asked me in Dari if melon was fattening. With the help of a translator I explained that fruits were in fact a very healthy food and considered not to cause obesity. He then explained to me that if you ate a melon after a big meal the melon was surely fattening.
Lesson: The impact of a “last straw” can serve to explain many things.
· Yesterday for lunch I was served french fries in my soup and sliced bananas with my meatballs. I quickly released the fries from their misfortune with a spoon and partially submerged them on a flatbed of ketchup. The meatballs were then swiftly slalomed across a hilly terrain of bananas onto a microwavable dish.
Lesson: Finding your comfort level is sometimes a rescue mission.
My day begins with a scan of security alerts sent by email or text messaging. If all is “normal” there is a quick exchange of agendas between colleagues and off we go across roundabouts, traffic jams and local crowds. What follows is always filled with surprises and the most fantastic situations. At the end of the day, you can always count on one thing: you will learn more from your experiences than your client will learn from you. That is just the way it is.
Here are two of my most recent lessons:
· Waiting to meet a senior executive, I was sitting in an office filled with large sofas. Lounging across from me was a local heavy set man looking at me curiously. He asked me in Dari if melon was fattening. With the help of a translator I explained that fruits were in fact a very healthy food and considered not to cause obesity. He then explained to me that if you ate a melon after a big meal the melon was surely fattening.
Lesson: The impact of a “last straw” can serve to explain many things.
· Yesterday for lunch I was served french fries in my soup and sliced bananas with my meatballs. I quickly released the fries from their misfortune with a spoon and partially submerged them on a flatbed of ketchup. The meatballs were then swiftly slalomed across a hilly terrain of bananas onto a microwavable dish.
Lesson: Finding your comfort level is sometimes a rescue mission.
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