We recently connected with Marshall Macfarlane and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Marshall, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
Wow – interesting question! Funny thing is – I know I’m resilient, but a lot of days, I don’t feel very resilient. I think it started with my upbringing. I was raised in a small town in rural New Brunswick, Canada. My parents were quite conservative and strict in that my brother and I weren’t given a lot of latitude for complaining. My whole family at one point or another had served in the military and “Soldier on” was our mantra.
As life progressed, I discovered that although I am good at a lot of things professionally, I’m not so good at relationships. The net result being failed marriages (yes, more than one!) Learn from your mistakes, pull up your britches and get on with it.
Finally, my current wife has been in a wheelchair since she was five years old. We are reasonably sure she is one of the oldest survivors of Type 2 Spinal Muscular Atrophy – a progressive, terminal disease. She is tough beyond words, and as her physical abilities have slowly trickled away over the years, life has become a never-ending exercise in scheduling and logistics. It’s hard to complain much, with her setting the example.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
As a highly functional introvert (I suppose) I have been shown the value of professional networking over the years, and maybe even self-promotion, which still really goes against my grain. Anyway, over the course of my professional career, I’ve learned that I enjoy teaching. Whether it is peers, employees, or a room full of strangers – I like communicating information in areas that I feel competent in. I do more public speaking than I ever imagined – whether as a panelist, an instructor on a course, or presenter at a conference – I talk a lot in front of people. I’m not an awesome public speaker but I’m a capable one. Unfortunately if you want to teach, you are going to have to talk to people.
My second passion is volunteering/helping. I’ve always enjoyed volunteering in various professional organizations, non-profits, charities – you name it. Currently I volunteer at my church, with my professional organization IFMA (International Facility Management Association), and with the Arizona Mule Deer Organization. It’s hard to feel sorry for yourself when you are helping other people
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Oh wow. I guess first off – step up. People will comment on my career trajectory and success but they weren’t there when I was the dirtiest guy in the factory, or volunteering for less-than-ideal projects, or jumping at opportunities for professional development. I gave my daughter this advice “Do more than what you are paid to do, and eventually you will get paid for more than you do”. I believe that.
Take responsibility. Own your mistakes. If you screwed it up, help fix it. Admit it. Chances are everyone knows anyway. They may not notice when you take responsibility but they sure will notice when you avoid it.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. That is a part of a bigger trait of always be learning. Jump on every course or training you can. Take as many diverse assignments as you can. Take time to ask questions and learn. Be curious and open-minded.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
I’m always looking for people to collaborate with! Whether as a consultant, public speaker or volunteer – I have a big network and being as “seasoned” as I am, I have a broad and deep level of experience. Facilities management, business continuity, leadership – if I’m not the right person to collaborate with, chances are I can introduce you to the right one, or get you started down the right path! I’m passionate (some might even say knowledgeable) about facilities management whether its process, operations, philosophy, construction, safety or technology. I’m passionate about business continuity! Look up the statistics regarding how many businesses fail after experiencing a natural or manmade disaster. It’s scary! Most small and medium-sized business have no plan. Finally, I’m passionate about leadership! I’m far from a perfect leader but my pet peeve is putting people in leadership roles, even entry-level ones, without any training or education about leadership. None. We’ll all have to go to the mandatory training about the new phone system, but we will put human beings in charge of other human beings with zero training on how to do that. It’s crazy!
Contact Info:
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marshall-macfarlane-ifma-fellow-0a426518/
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/macfacman-innovations/?viewAsMember=true
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
