SAP Consultant’s Guide to Avoiding Social Awkwardness
Author: Sabine Bennett, BI Consultant
My name is Sabine and I am a BI/BPC Consultant.
If you are still reading and nodding then you are a rare breed!
People often ask me what I do for a job and my initial response would be “I am a BI Consultant”.
Usually I can tell from the blank expression on their face that my counterpart is wondering if they have just been transported to an alternate reality where people speak a very strange foreign language.
I suppose it doesn’t really matter which area of SAP you work in, chances are you have found yourself in the same situation. That is why I’d like to share with you my guide for these slightly awkward social situations.
Initially I thought there was an easy way around this by eliminating all contact with people outside the SAP world. However, I soon realised that this would include about 96% of my closest friends, as well as my parents. No, my parents still don’t have the vaguest idea of what it is I do to raise money for rent. Sound familiar?
So, here is a simple “how to respond to the ‘what do you do?’ question” guide when asked by the following:
Philosopher: What do you do for work?
Me: I am glad you are asking. I provide questions to all your answers my friend
Pensioner: What do you do for work?
Me: I work with computers
Mad Scientist: What do you do for work?
Me: I create universes!
Hippie: What do you do for work?
Me: I create universes, dude!
Warehouse guy: What do you do for work?
Me: Funny, I work with warehouses too!
Banker: What do you do for work?
Me: See that fancy graph on your screen? I made that
Accountant: What do you do for work?
Me: Well, when you get sick of Excel – call me
Telemarketer: What do you do for work?
Me: Bit of this, bit of that
My Dad: What do you do for work?
Me: I am a brain surgeon Daddy, just like you always wanted me to be
And the moral of the story? It doesn’t matter where you are or what you do – Business Intelligence affects us all one way or another!
Click here to read more blogs from Sabine Bennett.
To contact one of our Business Intelligence experts call us on 02 8908 4200 or email contact@extendtec.com.au
September 27, 2011 at 10:25 am
Family: Don’t you work with computers ?
Me: No, never heard off them, work of the devil ….
(and run away, before they ask me me to cleanup / defrag / reinstall their pirate copy of Win Xp, that they’ve utterly buggered via “you’ve won an ipad” links and IE6)
…. and BTW, no I can’t get you a copy of that new game
October 19, 2011 at 7:44 am
Classic!…. Interesting that the answer I give my kids is the same answer Sabine gives to pensioners…. i.e. “I work with computers”. I guess this tells us something
February 9, 2012 at 1:46 pm
Loved the article Sabine…its true that SAPanese is another language entirely, so thanks for the entertaining and insightful tips on how to communicate with the rest of the world.