Knock, and the door opens
Author: Ella Huang

I was not sure about this guy at work. There was something not right about him. Or perhaps, there was something not right between him and me. I’d been relocated in our Auckland Operations for seven weeks. I’d had chances to talk to just about all the thirty odd staff here, except him.

Somehow we never got introduced for a start. His desk is at a far corner, which means we don’t feel the physical presence of each other that often. However, we share the same printer. Occasionally we would come cross each other when we go to the printer to pick up our printed stuff.

At the beginning, I didn’t know who he is. So I didn’t talk to him. I found out a bit later that he is the General Manager of our Auckland Stewardship Services. Suddenly I realised that he was no stranger to me. We exchanged emails in the past, when I was managing his brother’s Family Trust when I was in our Wellington Operations. Those dealings were not pleasant experiences because his brother would never reply to my letter or telephone requests. Out of frustrations I resorted to him, all I got was a few moaning and groaning but no real co-operation.

I began to wonder why he wouldn’t talk to me. Was it because of our bad dealings in the past? Was it because I was not in his department so I was not important to him? Or was it because I am Asian and not the ‘mainstream’? I guessed I would never find out. Maybe there was nothing between him and me. Maybe it was all my imagination. Maybe, he was just an introvert and uninteresting person!

Recently I happened to discover that I am now managing his Family Trust. Technically he is now my client! Oh dear.

I had been thinking for a while on how to break the ice. I knew that it was a matter of waiting for the right moment.

When I was making a drink in our cafeteria yesterday afternoon, someone walked in. It was him! There were just the two of us in the room. I had a look at him. He was wearing that typical frozen and dull face with him. It didn’t look like he was going to talk to me at all.

“Hi Todd! How are you!”

I greeted him, loudly, friendly, and sincerely.

In a split second, his frozen face defrosted. He smiled at me and replied, “Very good! What about you! How’s things in Auckland?”

I told him things are great in Auckland, and elaborated a bit to confirm my statement. He then asked me where I originally come from. I told him that I am from China. He said he’s been to Singapore and found Asian culture quite different and fascinating. As a matter of fact, he came close to visit China several times.

We kept talking. In a couple of minutes during our tea making, we had a very good casual and relaxed conversation. He seemed genuinely interested in our conversation and me.

The ice was finally broken! All I did was to start asking people how they were!

Don’t wait for people to come and talk to you. A lot of people like to keep their doors shut and wait for others to make the effort to knock their doors. Don’t stop there when you see the door is closed. Knock, the door might be open, and you may even get invited in, and enjoy whatever is inside.








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Ella Huang is a freelance writer. She shares her insights about love, passion, dreams and spirituality in: http://passioncity.blogspot.com and http://thedreamweaver.blogspot.com

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