There’s a whole crew of these grey suited middle management ‘strongmen’ who feel it’s part of their job to attempt to squeeze a tear out of their ‘adversary’ when shaking hands. I can visibly see the strain showing on their faces as they squeeze and shake hands in an effort to move up the chain.
Don’t get me wrong I’m no proponent of the limp handshake either, you know the one where you think a spider has crawled across your palm and you have to look twice to make sure. There's a lot to be said for moderation.
Anyway back to the 'strongmen'.
I never much liked these types, old school power managers who learned smiling out of a ‘teach yourself how’ book and apply business ethics and negotiation law at the breakfast table to get the last pancake.
Well all that aside, I have a very basic level of humour and as it was my last day in the Egypt office I decided to take on the ‘strongmen’. No not in some ideological debate or mental struggle, but to hit them were it hurts, literally…..the handshake!
I had a presentation and speeches etc yesterday and then the ‘strongmen’ lined up for the ‘handshake’. Now unbeknownst to them I was a bit of a ‘mercy champion’ (squeezing knuckles and fingers of your friends until they screamed) in my youth, but I left such shenanigans in the playground unlike our ‘strongmen’.
In a room full of people, I them wincing and ouching and one even to his knees in my vice-like grip. They all laughed it off in good humour, the onlookers were a bit puzzled but I explained it was an ‘in-joke’, which of course it was….I laughed heartily.
I’ll miss Egypt, the Egyptians and a whole host of other nationalities I met out here.
I’ve got a lot of memories from this place. I got married, had a child, had fun and learned a great deal about myself and what I want out of life.
Back to London tommorow, for good this time I think…..well maybe.
Don’t get me wrong I’m no proponent of the limp handshake either, you know the one where you think a spider has crawled across your palm and you have to look twice to make sure. There's a lot to be said for moderation.
Anyway back to the 'strongmen'.
I never much liked these types, old school power managers who learned smiling out of a ‘teach yourself how’ book and apply business ethics and negotiation law at the breakfast table to get the last pancake.
Well all that aside, I have a very basic level of humour and as it was my last day in the Egypt office I decided to take on the ‘strongmen’. No not in some ideological debate or mental struggle, but to hit them were it hurts, literally…..the handshake!
I had a presentation and speeches etc yesterday and then the ‘strongmen’ lined up for the ‘handshake’. Now unbeknownst to them I was a bit of a ‘mercy champion’ (squeezing knuckles and fingers of your friends until they screamed) in my youth, but I left such shenanigans in the playground unlike our ‘strongmen’.
In a room full of people, I them wincing and ouching and one even to his knees in my vice-like grip. They all laughed it off in good humour, the onlookers were a bit puzzled but I explained it was an ‘in-joke’, which of course it was….I laughed heartily.
I’ll miss Egypt, the Egyptians and a whole host of other nationalities I met out here.
I’ve got a lot of memories from this place. I got married, had a child, had fun and learned a great deal about myself and what I want out of life.
Back to London tommorow, for good this time I think…..well maybe.
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