A World of Possibility

Photo credit: Rafael Winer

Last January, seven Khmer managers from PEPY joined a management leadership training course, organized by Possibilities World. Stephanie Boegeman has checked in with Chor “Joe” Choch after the conclusion of the training session to learn about his experience.
SB: Please tell us what your role is on the PEPY team.
CC: I play around with the PEPY team. My position is bookkeeper. Another one is tour logistics/manager for the trip.
SB: I understand that you attended a management training course. Could you tell us a little bit about it?
CC: Sure. The course was for six weeks, one day a week. The training was really good and it was all about management things, like leadership. We did a lot of activities relating to work and life, such as how to deal with problems, how to prioritize, how to prepare for the future, and how to achieve our goals and dreams. The participants who attended the meeting were all managers, mostly Cambodians from the Siem Reap area.
SB: Can you give us an example of one of the activities you liked?
CC: One of the activities I really liked involved a blindfold and a rope. We all put on the blindfolds, and then our trainer, Michelle, hid the rope. The goal was to find the rope, and then made a perfect square with it. While making the square, everyone had to keep two hands on the rope at all times.
I liked this activity because you had to prepare and strategize beforehand to problem solve with a team. It was about making a process together in order to make sure everything was super clear.
SB: So what was your group strategy for making the rope into a square?
CC: Everyone put in their voice and discussed. Finally we came up with this plan: The person who finds the rope will be the leader. When they find the rope, they will clap their hands to communicate to everyone else where they are. We assigned a meeting place, where we would have enough space to work. The plan worked well. The leader guided everyone, and we made the rope into a square. We managed to solve this problem together successfully as a team. Michelle said that since she has been in Cambodia, we were the first team to ever solve this problem!
This activity shows how important communication is in a group. As managers, we need to discuss and make sure that everyone understands what the goal is, so we are all on the same page.
SB: How do you think this training session with Possibilities World will affect your perspective at work?
CC: I’ve learned a lot of things about leadership. I really like the idea of being a better leader. I also liked learning about prioritization. When we have a lot of tasks to do, which is most important? When is the deadline? Thinking about these things will help me for my job and also for my life in the future, to be a better leader when I’m leading trips. One more thing is about clear communication. I learned how to talk and get clear information from whoever I’m talking to.
SB: How would you describe your overall experience with Possibilities World?
CC: The leadership training was a pretty new thing for me. It’s a really good experience for a team who wants to be motivated and work together. I hope I can keep in contact with the other managers who attended the training, and keep learning and sharing together in the future.