First world, is that hard?

I was born in Brazil, I have lived in Chile for two years and I am in Colombia for the past 26 years. I also travel a lot and I have stayed long times abroad, particularly in India, but also in England and the U.S.

And I realize that if someone lives in a first-world or third-world country is difficult to understand I don’t live in either of them… I am living in the middle, and since I was a child.

Particularly during the dictatorial military period in Brazil, I didn’t like the idea of belonging to the third world, the reality of the time; it was around then that the term developing countries[1] got popularized and Brazil was quickly classified like that.

Initially it just sound like a polite way to say the same – and it still has that ring in it – but along the years, what I have seen is that by developing in a proper and integral way, a country can reach the first world. That is a firm belief I have that any country could be a first world country, and so giving their population a better life. This is why I am posting this.

I lived in Chile just after Pinochet has left, so it was still underdeveloped. By seeing its growth and the fact that now it is part of the first world club[2]… I don’t want to get into the debate (is it or not?), but I have seen sure signs even when I was living there that may be useful for other countries:

• A respect for taxes. I was really surprised when I bought something in the streets and I got a boleta (invoice), as street business is often informal. Later, I would have a glimpse of this that comes from a good use of tax-payers’ money and a nice system. For instance, a common way of taxes evasion is to enter the country with a product in the bag. Once, I went from Buenos Aires to Santiago with a friend who had several books in her bag; at the time of customs, she went straight to the agent and showed the books and the invoice. As books don’t pay tax, he just looked at it and he allowed us to go. Even when there is the need of paying, it is quite easy and fair. Quick summary: by educating people to value paying taxes and by using them in a proper way, a country develops.
• Training. There is a system that motivates companies to do training as the value can be discounted in their taxes declaration. As I was a trainer myself, that came very handy and I do miss a system like that, living in Colombia. By giving opportunities for others to be trained and learned different skills, a country develops.
• Awareness of opportunity. Chile is the land of opportunity and if a foreigner goes there and dedicates himself or herself, it is possible to climb very high; although I can’t say if it is like that for nationals, it looked as it is. Although it is a relatively small country in terms of population, this gives a big advantage in relation to neighbor countries. By changing the perception instead of lacking to an opportunity, a country has a better chance for development.
• Work, work and work. Chileans work very hard and it has been helping the country at the time of climbing the ladder of first world. But it is not only hard working, as I would include Colombians in that category too; Chileans are often very much success-driven, which creates a nice dynamic in the country in general. Stimulate work, but direct it towards attaining success.
• Little corruption. That is the most impressive part of living in Chile… Little to say about that, really, just check corruption indexes[3], and it comes just after Uruguay in the whole Latin America.  It really stimulates the economy to know people won’t use their power for personal advantage. And maybe that is why people do pay taxes. Very simple: educate people to not get tempted by corruption and the country will develop even more.

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[1] More about this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developing_country

[2] Check this updated webpage: https://www.investopedia.com/updates/top-developing-countries/

[3] Transparency is an organization that watches on this. Check their report: https://www.transparency.org/cpi2018?gclid=Cj0KCQjwoebsBRCHARIsAC3JP0LljKEMfPQThn-eICRMPMfw1Ktqf-053RPAQsFHqbEIwQ194VfJZCwaAn1sEALw_wcB

Who am I? REALLY!

An old joke a friend of mine used to tell was about this person who was very blunt and used to have an answering machine with a message asking Who are you? What do you want? Then, he went through a self-development course and one of the results was the change in that message: Who are you REALLY? What do you REALLY want?

Although governments and main powers, everything in the main stream and in our day-to-day life point to the development of things and situations, societies and civilizations, reality is what really matters is how I develop as a person and human being.

Our profession, our tastes and preferences, our family and friends… all of that only contributes to what I am, but knowing it is the basis for any relevant development.

Think about this: if you run a company, one of the things you need to know is what that company is: its mission, values and vision, production and service, its culture and influence. When you know that REALLY, that means, with knowledge and experience, and then you can proceed to develop it, otherwise you may make many mistakes on the way.

By developing the self from that point of self-knowledge, I create a wave, inspiring many others to change their own reality – after all, that is the meaning of development; the change by emerging potentials. Eventually that wave transforms your house, family, city, country and, why not, the world.

Yes, world transformation can come from self-transformation, by knowing what I REALLY am.

All good, all bad...

Reading is often a pleasure, but for me most of the time is a necessity. As a business consultant, still looking for THAT job, I need to be aware of all is happening around.

It surprises me, however, when I find things that look so interesting, but at the same time something is missing. One article in The Economist did the trick this time.

After reading it, I remembered something that happened to me a short time ago. One of my job opportunities is a work with people from a Eastern country. I was sent to a webpage that checks the culture of people and I was amazed when they said those people were just like Latin Americans. Talking to a friend of mine she said the same.

Wondering, I finally found a friend's son, who works as the only Latin American manager in a company that comes from that Eastern country - all other managers are from that country. And his comments were totally different. He gave me an approach that matched what I heard from other people.

By reading that article, I find the same thing. It seems people base their assumptions on one side only - in this case, on the perspective of people from those countries we call developed. So, they see those Eastern people, they see Latin American and they say, well, they are all the same!

Globalisation is creating an impact. In Colombia, where I live, I find NOBODY whose lives were not changed by that - either because they work in a company, or their relatives or friends left to live in another country. More strange is the fact the author mentions several Indian names and I don't know a place where the globalisation effect is stronger than that wonderful country.

I think that if you have to check the effectiveness of something - and I agree it is time to review globalisation - you should take all approaches, not only the point of view of a piece of land. And, by the way, I went to Spain and that is a country enjoying the effects of globalisation. Just open your eyes, nothing is all bad, nothing is all good.

Take care!