Lessons in NYC: Day 2

(This blog entry is part II of a series of blogs on my NYC adventures and associated random thoughts. Initial blog post is  http://sandyalane.blogspot.com/2012/07/lessons-in-nyc-day-1_23.html)

My attempt at getting a pix of my new hoodie :)

You can't say I'm not a quick study. A New Yorker now (albeit for five days), I chose to dress in all black today...black heels, black skirt, and black polka dot top. After stopping by a street vendor for an egg sandwich (YUM and $1.50 at that!!), I took on my stomping grounds of the AICPA building with a new found confidence. The double team of security was no threat to me. With head held high and ID in hand, I breezed past security and typed "19" into the elevator pad without hesitation or need of assistance from a local. As I greeted the 19th floor receptionist, I actually got a smile back from her. I attribute this to my Starbucks that would negate consumption of her coffee and her need later to provide a refill. Yep, I got this morning gig down.

Breakfast from the street vendor

Class was good. Very deep, but very good. Fortunately the constant noise of NY traffic and whistling for cabs doesn't affect my sleep. A good night sleep is essential for a full day of training. After the close of class, I was greeted with the muggy summer New York weather and the bustle of the city. I made a quick stop at a street vendor to purchase a pink "I Love NY" hoodie and a banana (only in NYC can you find both items on the same cart) and then decided to check out Times Square while there was still daylight. Wow...a zoo and haven for people-watching at it's best. As I walked away from the noise of the Square, the smell of incense drew me into St Mary's cathedral directly across from my hotel. A nun invited me to join her and another nun for their nightly prayer service by the altar. It was lovely and filled my heart much more than my Times Square experience. After getting a quick tour of the beautiful church from the elderly nun (who is from Iowa...small world!) and an invitation back, I went on to my mission of dinner. Tonight I decided on deli...authentic NYC deli. And I am not disappointed.

St. Mary's Cathedral

Since I am now sitting here in my hotel room enjoying a spectacular deli "New Yorker" sandwich (roast beef, swiss, tomato, lettuce and horseradish) and have all the time in the world, I will share a story that filled my memory today. It's a story of professional sabotage. Looking around the room at my fellow trainees on the 19th floor today gave me a flashback to my CPA studying days. I had completely forgotten about my one and only brush with female sabotage. I have been fortunate in my many, many years at Lutz to work with women who are "balcony" women. We cheer each other on from the balcony and encourage growth in moving up. We don't pull each other down. What a blessing that has been. This was not the case in my formative professional years at Peter Kiewit Sons'. At a mere age of twenty-two, I was sabotaged and yes, women can be ruthless.  

The year was 1990 and I was gainfully employed at Peter Kiewit as a staff accountant for their newly acquired Continental Can division. I was ambitious and excited to be part of this company. AND it was downtown which was an enticing plus for me. Fresh faced and living in the city, I was enthusiastic to take on any professional opportunity placed in front of me. I had seen a sign in the HR area on a CPA review course that Kiewit was generously offering for those interested. Accepting a job in private accounting, I had put the CPA exam on the back burner, but this was an opportunity that I couldn't pass up. After signing up and picking up my many stacks of books, I showed up at the first evening class. Arriving early with highlighters in hand, I chose a seat close to the front as I didn't want to miss anything. Most students chose the back, thus an open seat next to me. As I contemplated using the open space to stack my many books, a man hurriedly sat next to me just as the instructor started opening introductions. I looked over to the man to offer a smile and I am quite sure my face showed the shock that I felt.  I recognized the handsome man as the boss, the big guy (biggest...CEO of Continental Can), Mr. Tom Gardner.

In complete shock, I turned to the instructor trying to figure out why the man that everyone (especially women) talked about and admired, our ultimate boss who had no interaction with us lowly folks, was sitting next to me at a study class no less. Although my colleagues talked about sharing an elevator with him and women giggled like school girls on their "Tom encounters", I had never actually spoken to the man. Let me give you a visual of Mr Gardner. He looked like Richard Gere, but even more striking. He was older, although I didn't have a clue as to how old (anyone over 30 at that time was viewed as "old" to me). So here I was with the beautiful and elusive boss man planted right next to me for the next three hours.  

After the initial shock wore off, I was fully engaged in hearing what I needed to do to study and pass the CPA exam. Tom seemed as focused as I and we passed pleasantries no different than two college students who had signed up for the same class. I quickly forgot that he was my boss (four steps removed) and we were soon friendly with each other and sharing notes. By the end of the class, I asked the obvious...why was he there? Tom had no problem telling me that although he had an Ivy League education, his MBA, and a resume a foot long; he didn't have his CPA and he had always wanted it. So he decided to sit for the exam and thought the study class was a must for him to accomplish this feat. Looking back, I think he was following Garrett's rule of "if you don't grow, you become stagnant".

Highlighted study materials of today were reminiscent of my books of the 90's

Each week we continued our group CPA classes and each week Tom sat right next to me. This continued through the entire course. Our conversations entailed specific study matter and what we did the ensuing week to prepare for the exam. We became study buddies of sorts and he acted like a school boy; excited for the challenge of the exam (kind of how I feel in NYC right now???). Although Tom and I got along splendidly working toward our common goal, I quickly noticed the glares I received from the women I worked with. They started asking me questions about Tom; none of which I knew the answer since other than small talk, we didn't talk about our personal lives.

Following a promotion to department head in payroll, I was feeling the chill in the air from some of my female co-workers who were hired at the same time as me, but didn't get to sit next to Tom Gardner nor enjoy a similar promotion. I just smiled and kept my distance. Based on their conversations revolving around office gossip and negativity, I was convinced that my mom's mantra of "kill them with kindness, but keep your distance" was good advice. So that I did and felt successful in my attempt to keep to myself. That all unraveled one day when I was called to my boss' boss' office (two up from me if you can follow all that). He proceeded to tell me that the staff shouldn't patronize with the executives and if given that privilege, we certainly shouldn't repeat our private conversations. Completely dumbfounded I listened to him tell me how the "girls" I worked with shared with him their discomfort in my telling of the private life of Tom Gardner. He went on to say that he had no choice but to tell Tom himself and that I should use this as a lesson. My brain quickly deciphered what had just happened to me. There wasn't a coined term at the time, but it is now known as professional sabotage. And sadly, women tend to be the clear leaders in this area. I also knew that there was nothing that I could do. Other than letting my boss' boss know that I had said nothing and he was misguided, I visualized how that conversation would sound with me knocking on Tom Gardner's door. It would have sounded like a grade school girl fight on the playground. So I never said a word.

I did run into Tom in the hallway some time later. We exchanged a quick "hello" and shared our passing exam results. It was a bit awkward and I really have no clue whether he was really told of the girl drama or not. And there wasn't a chance that I was going to ask. I have never seen him again as I started at Lutz within the month. I do have to say that I am very thankful for him choosing the seat next to me. That was the hardest I have studied for anything...peer pressure at it's max! I couldn't imagine failing and having to tell my boss' boss' boss' boss of this result. The ending result was that the sabotage actually did make me stronger (I can eyeball a sabotager a mile away and will fend them off tooth and nail from their prey!), and the CPA certification was my gateway into my fun and fruitful journey in public accounting.


So that's my story. I will tell you that the women in my class today seemed harmless and not ones to join in the ranks of the sabotage I experienced in the past. I'll take my Pollyanna attitude in concluding that the "sabotage" type women get weeded out young or eventually get called out before reaching the ranks of we older professionals working toward our next credentials. Let's just go with that. And no Tom Gardner in my class. I am going to have to rely on my own good old-fashioned self-motivation. Alright, that's all I have for tonight.


And I am going to have to try this deli again....the New Yorker was nothing short of amazing :)   

My new favorite deli