I think it was 2005 when I started to work. Means I am working for more than 10 years.
I worked in different countries; Turkey, Spain, Italy, Netherlands and finally UK. Different projects, different subjects and luckily generally different but very nice teams. I had really great managers. Some of them were really special. They had their magic touch in my career. And we said good bye to one of them yesterday evening. He is leaving our company after 27 years.
Yesterday evening, there was a farewell drink for him. Lots of colleagues were there to have a proper goodbye moment with him. I was watching people and in their eyes I was clearly seeing how sad they are because Wouter is leaving but at the same time how happy the are because they were there with him...
When Wouter was talking about his 27 years in company, I thought about the last 4 years I know him. And the change he created in just 4 years in my life...
It was 2014 when I joined Wouter's team. You may recall it was after we moved to UK. I was trying to get used to our new life. And I was desperately trying to save my working life. You all know, how happy I was in the Netherlands. But you also all know how unhappy I was with my work in the Netherlands. I saw moving to UK as a chance to change this. I was really missing to be happy when working, I was missing to be motivated, I was missing to be useful...
It was Ale, who is definitely another very important person in my working life, asking me "Gulcin are you happy with what you are doing?". When he asked this I was surprised. I really could not believe he is asking me this. People were asking me how I am doing with job, how I am doing with projects. But he was asking me "if I am happy"... I said him "No. I am not Ale. I am really not happy". And he said me "Let me help you!"
That day was a turning point for me. I will never forget that day. It was not only that he was opening a door for me. But he was also paying attention to me as an individual, and he was thinking I may be better at another role. That, even before things started to change, made me happy...
Than with Ale's help, I met with Wouter. He offered me the role in his team, which I happily accepted. It was April 2014. A new era in my career started.
You all know the rest of the story. How happily I was working, how I was enjoying the life in the office, how I was tired but at the same time how I was crazy energic.
I worked hard. I worked very hard after April 2014. but with a great joy.
Being in Wouter's team changed me as an employee, it also changed me as a person.
He was so different than all the other managers I worked together after I moved abroad. He was listening to the people. He was paying attention to what they said. He was having a clear vision and he was trying to see where the things you are offering may fit in that vision. Slowly I started to raise my voice. Because I realized it is being heard again.
Day by day I feel that I am getting my self confidence back. I was offering new solutions. He was listening. Not always he was accepting but he was explaining me why they may not work. He was giving me the space to make a mistake. And when I have mistakes -and for sure I was not doing all the things right- he was there to support me. I was working hard because I really did not want to disappoint him. But I also worked hard because with his support working was really a pleasure for me.
I learned a lot from Wouter. Those small talks we had together. He was saying something. And I was always being surprised with his sentences because they were clearly showing that he knows me, he understands me. And he was giving me feedbacks that I can really use to improve myself.
At that time, I was -kind of still I am- a perfectionist. And he made me realize that it makes me slow, very slow. We were having a small talk again. Wouter said me, Gulcin we are cooking a great meal here together. And I am asking you to give me some onion to put in the dish. You are looking for the perfect onion and you are trying to go to the middle of the onion because you think it will be the best part to give me. But I need onions urgently to start cooking. So give me some onion that you have, let me start cooking and then you can reach to the center of the onion and give me the best part in parallel. I will happily use it...
I thought about this for days. How true it was. Not only for my work but also for my life. That small talk changed me. I started to deliver much more quickly. I was delivering small things but I was delivering continuously. And that was giving me great chance to see what I can improve on the small parts that I have already delivered.
Another day, we were talking with Wouter again when he said me; Gulcin "your good is enough for me. What you are working on sometimes does not have to be perfect in your standards. But I need your good in several areas not only in one area" Another thing that changed my career. I was generally focusing on one thing and working on it till it is perfect. After this, I started to work on several things and let them go with maybe lower standards -according to me- but deliver more things. With this, I was able to support my team in several areas. And actually working on several areas was giving me space to think about what I can improve for each.
Another day, Wouter assigned me a task. Team was working on something big and what he gave me was really irrelevant. I never mind and started to work on it. Later when we were talking, he said me "Gulcin I needed to distract the client with what you are doing and give the rest of the team some space to finish what they are working on. Thanks for helping me for this." Another great moment for me. You may not be working on the most important thing all the times but you may help people to deliver the the important things. This is called as being a team...
I can list lots of other things I learned from him, how to delegate, when to delegate, allow people to deliver things, not try to control every single thing, but always know what your team is working on, accept lower standards (sometimes) but always push for better. And give people the chance to shine because anybody can...
What was better, it was not only Wouter from whom you can learn things when you are working. He was creating such an environment when people really work together and learn from each other. I learned from every single people in our team something. Small or big does not better. Being in that team help me to improve myself a lot. That is why leaving that team - although I was going for another thing great- was not easy for me at all. You know this as well.
The things I learned when I was working in Wouter's team not only make me a better employee, but they make me a happier employee. And now, I know that this is one of the most important things in the working life. If you are happy with working, no matter what is you are working on, for sure you will be successful on it. And believe me when Deniz arrived they made me a better and happier mom. Because I learned that I cant control everything and sometimes good is enough. - Not always and, I can still control some :) -
Now Wouter is leaving the company as well as UK. It feels quite strange because although we are not working together anymore, it was great to know he is somewhere in the company and I can always get his support. Now things are changing but as we always talked with him, it is time to stay calm and see what the change will bring to us. As I wrote on instagram yesterday: I am really sad he is going but I am really happy that I had chance to work with him in my career. And I hope one day I can be a leader like him. This is really one of the things I wish for my career...
Goodbye Wouter and thank you very much...