- What’s the first thing you do when you get out of bed?
The first thing I do is stretch. That’s something I got from my grandma who is 95 years old. She always told me ‘mijo you need to stretch, that’s something you’ve got to do first thing in the morning’. I took it to heart, especially now, I see the importance of it as I get older compared to when I was in my early 20’s. Then, I like to step outside for a quick moment to check out the day. It freshens me up before I jump into the shower.
- What gives you energy?
You know, I’m pretty natural when it comes to this stuff. What gives me energy is getting a good night’s sleep. I’m generally very well rested, so it’s never a problem to wake up early in the morning. Of course, it helps that I’m a morning person.
- What daily habit or practice helps you thrive?
I’d have to say that I’m a pretty competitive person, so I always check to see what my peers are doing as far as performance goes. I believe this gives me the ability to know the areas where I need to improve if someone is outperforming me. There’s always room for improvement, so I am very open to it, in order for me to thrive.
- Name a book that changed your life.
The one book I like was written by Bo Jackson. I’m a huge sports fan; as a kid that’s what toughened me up. The book was Bo Knows Bo, it’s an autobiography. It talks about coming from humble beginnings and having to work hard to achieve success. I think it resonates with many of us, that things are not always easy and that we have to work hard. I didn’t read many books back then but I saw Bo as an authoritative figure so that book left an impression on me.
- Tell us about your relationship with your phone. Does it sleep with you?
It’s a love/hate relationship. I have a separate phone that I use for work only. When it’s the weekend and I’m not ‘on call’, I normally put my work phone aside. But trust me, in my mind I have difficulty with it because I always feel I need to check it to see whether I have any new emails, text messages, or missed calls.
- How do you deal with email?
I prefer to communicate via email. It creates a paper trail. It helps me remember certain things and I check it regularly. Nowadays, you can check your email anywhere so it makes it easier for me to access it. Every morning, I set aside some time to look at it, the same during the middle part of my day and at end of the day to make sure I have reviewed all emails and have addressed them accordingly.
- You unexpectedly find 15 minutes in your day, what do you do with it?
It has happened before. During that time, I like to engage with my team. There are times when I’m not always with them in the same area, so if I do have some time, I try to engage and interact with them.
- When was the last time you felt burnout and how did you overcome it?
I’ll say that in my past, when I first started working for a company and having to go through the process of onboarding and training, that the onboarding process created some frustration and anxiety. I think that was the last time that I experienced burnout. I felt that I wasn’t grasping it quick enough and wasn’t utilizing my resources at the time. It took me a bit but I eventually overcame it. I adjusted to the workload and learned how to manage it properly and eventually found effective ways to release that stress and anxiety.
- What advice would you give your younger self?
Oh man! There’s something I heard from Kobe Bryant at the end of his career. He said to ‘enjoy the ride, enjoy the process’.
- How are readers able to connect with you?
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