José Miguel Rodríguez: a short biography.

José Miguel Rodríguez: a short biography.

I was born on July 6th, 1987, at Clinica Corominas, in Santiago, Dominican Republic. My parents were both hardworking architects, happy to receive their first-born, and second grandkid from both families. I believe I was healthy, but I do know based on pictures and stories that I was really affected by my asthma (my first love) and had to be admitted to the hospital on several occasions. I also know that I was spoiled, with a lot of toys and experiences. My dad started his carnival group around the same time I was born, so I was dressed in costumes and participated in family traditions from an early age. Those early years were good, my parents worked hard, I went to school, and then we all spent our afternoons in my grandmother's house where the whole family lived. At least that's what the pictures say. 2 years after I was born my sister came into the world; 2 years after that, my little brother joined.

When I was four I was registered for English lessons, these really shaped a lot of who I am today. Apparently, I was told by my aunt that I was to be called Joe (from Joseph, Jose) Mike (from Michael, Miguel) so I went to English classes and told my teacher that my name was Joe Mike, and from that day forward that's how I was known: Joe Mike. Elementary school (La Salle) was nothing but a continuation from my pre-school because back in Dominican Republic private schools are set up to allow students to go through complete primary education in a single institution, at least most of them. This means I spent 18 years of my life commuting to the same place, taking classes from 8 AM to 1:30 PM with the same group of classmates, and seeing the same faces as teachers across breaks and in school activities.

Going through life as a student got compounded by my love for music, which saw me enroll in piano classes when I was 12 but dropping out 6 months after due to me and solfa not getting along, so I decided for a simpler one: popular guitar. This really clicked, my blind teacher was evidence that you could do anything you wanted if you really worked hard for it. Now, in school, I was the nerdy student, the one who was defined by Dragon Ball Z, coming up with weird ideas for science fairs, and getting some sort of bullying after a couple of embarrassing moments. I was a solid English speaker, good at guitar, painting, and drawing, and being a role model for younger kids, I got to play at school events, although my fashion sense was... null. One big defining thing is that my grandmother was the headmaster of the school's high school so everybody (teachers that is) knew me and my family: "Oh you are Fulvia's grandkid", "Mr. Rodriguez, son of Francis, a man of few words". To this day these words stick with me. I got friend zoned for the first time, and second, and would not (for the love of me) make the first move, ever again, after that. Then in 2003, it happened, a massive accident that nearly had me lose my parents after a car pushed us off the road while returning from a beach trip with my whole family, a cousin, and 9 of my sister's high school friends. I saw my dad nearly lose a leg and die, went through their recovery process at home taking care of their wounds, became the caretaker for my siblings, got a job at the English institute, and saw my senior year pass by in a very different way. That experience had me choose to go into med school, even against my counselor's recommendation to go into sound engineering.

Ah, college, it began with a bang, I still remember my first class: Biology 101. Since day one I loved it, I don't know if it was the lack of wearing a uniform, or the fact that I had been teaching for a year and considered myself to be more mature than my classmates; I just know it was good. It was a fresh start, I was not the nerd anymore, I was front and center, but this time this front and center got me to shine, and people noticed, I felt relevant and popular. I only became popular during my senior year because I could give good massages to the girls who sat in front of me. I quickly gained my teachers' favor. I was good at math, really good, getting an exemption for my math finals for math 101 and 102. Straight As (except for social studies, no logic there), sciences were easy, physics? simple, medical courses? Really cool and easy. I made it a mission to graduate from med school while working part-time as a teacher and I did: #5 in my class, 3.7 GPA, international rotation, class unionized, and producer of our graduation concert. I believe my college career was a great achievement. But the best thing through these years was that a year and change into my college education I met the person who would later become my wife: Alicia.

Alicia and I met in a very simple way: I was asked by a common friend to tutor math. At this stage, I was in my first year of college and had an ease of understanding math. From that moment I was hooked, I sneakily got her email address and started emailing and talking to her after convincing her to give me her phone number. We would talk for hours on the phone and no, her parents didn’t like me. I think it was because she was their only girl, but I also know that it was because I was in med school and they understood that I would have a very irregular life, with long hours and very little stability. That didn’t deter me though, and, persistent as I am, I kept on calling and talking and getting to know her. With every conversation, I grew more fond of her and on March 19, 2007, over MSN Messenger I asked her to be my girlfriend. We were both very naïve, I had just had 3 girlfriends before her and was not known for making the first move. It was actually a month and a couple of days before we kissed for the first time. We had to sneak a lot though to see each other, her dad would pay a security guard in the university to keep an eye on her once she started, so we had to find ways of being smart. A year and a half into our love affair I went to her house and proposed in the least romantic way possible. I wanted her to know that I would be there for the rest of her life, to support her, and be by her side. She had had a lot of issues with her family so once I finished teaching my last class of the day I went to the closest department store, got the cheapest ring I could find, and drove to her house. While on my knee her dad pulled into the driveway… at that moment he knew he had just lost a daughter.

We married in 2011, August 19^th, big ceremony with all the family and friends we could host. We moved into my grandmother’s old house which we remodeled to fit our needs and for a couple of years this was our small house. At this stage, I had just graduated med school and started my public service year as a family doctor, was still working as an ESL teacher, and had also taken a job at the university as a teacher. A year after I got the opportunity to join a company that exposed me to medical device sales and this experience showed me how good I was in this field. I learned a lot and then decided to pursue a specialization in orthopedic surgery. I applied, got accepted in the 4^th spot overall, and started residency training in 2014. It wasn’t easy. I went home once every 3 days, sometimes more, but after a couple of months, it got better. Because of my academic skills, I became a student coordinator and a leader of my coworkers, advocating for both patients and students. When I transitioned fully into orthopedics is when I realized I may not finish residency training. The department heads did not care about the patients, anyone’s education, or anything at all. After a lot of thought, I decided to quit, and the company with which I worked in medical devices offered me a job as a sales manager, which I did successfully for 4 years before being promoted to sales director for the Dominican Republic.

One of the best things that has happened to me is my daughters, who were born in 2013 and 2016. Before we married we knew we would wait at least 2 years before having kids, we knew we wanted to be young parents and raise our kids differently from the ways we were raised. Amelia was the first one and she was one of the things that influenced me to quit residency training: one day I got home and she didn’t recognize me as her dad; that did it. Having kids was a paradigm shift, I don’t believe in a patriarchal system so I always wanted to be a dad, present. My wife is not the one who cares for the kids, we do; she cooks, and I clean. We are both parents, both workers, and both humans.

In 2018 we decided to emigrate to Canada, seeking a better future for our kids, a place where they could grow without fear of crime, with the potential of being whatever they want to be without reservations, and a place where corruption is not as rampant as in DR. After a long process we got our approval and moved in 2020 during the first months of the pandemic. It wasn’t easy, we had no job offers but, thankfully, we have been able to establish ourselves in the neighborhood, professionally, and the kids are part of the school community.

The thing that breaks

 "It ain't right", "It's forbidden"
That's what's said, but they don't realize
that those who say "no", are the ones who want "yes!";
That most people crave stuff that they wish they could forget about.

But it's not as simple, as easy.
Especially when that thing is there when you are breathing,
in front of your eyes, embedded in each thought,
clinging to your skin as each morning sun comes up.

And then you find yourself dreaming while awake.
Repeating the mistake of fantasizing instead of
taking the time, to tell the truth of what you feel.
Feeling that by doing so you'll push away what's real.

Just Let it Out

Once again, breathe.

Release the tension on your neck,

breathe, again.

It's only a weight that's added to your back,

one more on top of the others,

a tower so high now that it's far to see where it ends.

It is said that nothing is given to us that we can't carry, or handle.

In my head though, it's getting pretty crowded.

Am I dealing with it correctly? am I handling it?

Or is it all reaching a boiling point?

Or is every reaction just a glimpse at an overflowing pot,

and I just think I am fine?

Once again, breath.

Others are doing it, why can't you?

Why cant' you close your eyes, put your head down, and walk?

Every now and then, let go of some weight,

toss a load aside, and take a new step, and probably a new load.

Balance it all: frustrations, anger, happiness and joy, and maybe the pot will result in a great stew.

Wardman Construction Job Scam

Beware!

Some people are prying on innocents in need for a job with a scam offer from Wardman Construction, using this site as webpage www.wardmanconstruct.com, and the name Joseph Schwartz as contact, with the email joseph@wardmanconstruct.com. Another person named "Doris" also followed up with documents, her email and contact is Doris Kaur <doris@wardmanconstruct.com>

This is a copy of the bogus contract .

Beware of this scam! Don't send any real info, play with them for a while if you want... :)

Here is the job detail:

Wardman Construction Inc is searching for an Administrative Assistant who is motivated and committed to providing outstanding customer service each and every day while ensuring a positive experience for each caller and visitor. The ideal candidate will be self-motivated and have excellent typing skills.

  Responsibilities • Support site management with employee programs and services • Reads and routes incoming mail. Locates and attaches the appropriate file to correspondence to be answered by the employer. • Organizes and maintains file system, and files correspondence and other records.

• Conducts research, and compiles and types statistical reports.

• Answers and screens manager's telephone calls and arranges conference calls. • Coordinates manager's schedule and makes appointments. • Greets scheduled visitors and conducts to appropriate area or person. • Arranges and coordinates travel schedules and reservations.

  • Coordinates and arranges meetings, prepares agendas, reserves and prepares facilities, and records and transcribes minutes of meetings.

• Makes copies of correspondence or other printed materials.

• Prepares outgoing mail and correspondence, including e-mail and faxes.

 • Orders and maintains supplies, and arranges for equipment maintenance. Requirements Requirements

• Fluent English required and any of Bilingual language is a plus (Spanish/German/Mandarin/Portuguese)

• Experience as an administrative professional
  • Proficient in MS Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint) • Exceptional customer service skills and phone etiquette

• and written communication skills and demonstrated organizational skills with attention to detail required

• Previous experience with heavy phone/email traffic preferred • This is a full-time position from Monday to Friday.
   Benefits Benefits • Flexible PTO (17 days to start) • Highly subsidized health insurance • 401K with a competitive match

• Parental leave

The second AOR

Yes, this time we double, triple and quadruple-checked everything.

1. We named each file the same name as the requested document
2. We added the initials of the applicant for each file at the end
3. We added the files at the time my wife was checking each file on her computer
4. Then she read each file name while we checked the file in my computer
5. We signed, submitted and paid.

And now we wait for the progress, at least, 5 days have passed and we haven't gotten cancelled.

They have been nerve wracking though, checking that damn page just to see if we had gotten cancelled, again, no progress yet, forums must be tired of me already; am I giving this too much attention?, should I stop worrying and check in a month?

Who knows, I've never been the most patient person.

So we wait

Tomorrow, September 4th, is the day in which the next draw is supposed to happen. Will it? who knows. Will the score stay below 468? Beats the hell out of me, all I know is that all our documents are ready and the anxiety is driving me nuts.

I hope I can have a good night.

When life gets you down: how our Express Entry application got rejected

468 is not a bad CRS score for a married-with-children couple, as a matter of fact, with a 468 we would've gotten an ITA in 15 out of 16 draws so far, and so we did on August 12th. We were so exited we could barely hold ourselves, after 1 year of actively pursuing this (WES, CELPIP, IELTS), we had finally gotten that long awaited e-mail, and so the process begun.

We got all our documents and requested our reference letters, transferred our funds from an investment account to a joint checking account, birth certificates?, check; marriage record?, check; police certificate?, super easy online process, check. We got all our translations, sealed everything, compiled files, named folders and got ready to upload, which we started doing on a sequenced manner: we started by uploading what we already had (digital photos, certificate from WES and education, etc) and kept uploading as soon as we got new documents.We went and got our medical, and finally, on Tuesday August 27th, we finished uploading and payed all fees associated. We got the AOR.

I started reading on moving process, looking for experiences from previous families, health insurances, car? no car?, my dream of living abroad was coming true and my whole family was going to have a shot at a better life. I created a profile at http://myimmitracker.com (really recommend it) and joined the Moving2Canada web page. These were about to be the longest 6 months of my life.

On Friday the 30th, my wife calls me with an excited voice: "we got an e-mail from our application", and the first thing that comes to my head is "Medicals Passed". So soon? it's an average 30 days for Meds Passed, wow, that was fast! When we log in, our hearts sink, the words "cancelled" read on the status. We start reading as fast as we can, and finally read a message that says that it has been cancelled as incomplete because I didn't provide with the police certificate from Dominican Republic, where I have lived from 2005 to 2019... What? Of course I did! I start reading everything I can, forums, CIC page and nothing. How can they say I have not submitted? I did, I have it in the folder in my laptop!

Only that I was wrong. My wife gets into the profile and finds a list of the submitted documents, and there it is: Police Certificate, Jose Rodriguez, Document Name: Digital Photo.jpeg.

I wanted to die.

I couldn't believe that I had made the mistake that could end our family's opportunity, all because of not being thorough enough. Turns out that because of me checking so much the list of uploads, on the last "re-check", I mistakenly uploaded my photo again, not the certificate. We had no choice, we had to create another application, go back into the pool, and wait, long days, for another draw.

It has been a harrowing weekend, depressed? no, upset at myself? yes. At least we will get a refund, but knowing that only 4 days after we would've gotten an update on our cases kills my bones and aches my stomach.

There was no "Additional Documents Requested", it was just cancelled.

So please, be thorough, check your documents, name them with correct identifiers and check them after each upload is complete, if you have a partner, check them separately, don't make my mistake, don't risk the time or the emotions, for being too fast.

Here we wait, until the next draw, with our 468, hoping that it happens fast, and that I don't go full dumb again.

Hope this helps.

Como seducirla sin tocarla

Te ves sin rumbo, frente a ti parece un rompecabezas, su forma es perfecta, pero no la entiendes, que difícil es tenerla sin poder poseerla, que ella quiera sentirte, pero no la dejas. 

Te entiendo, no eres lento, solo estas perdido, cuando intentas explorarla su cuerpo es un acertijo, sin embargo, hay cosas que a uno nuca le fallan, trata de caerme atrás a ver si no te desmayas:

Empieza siempre por su pelo, una caricia basta, que tu mano roce el cuello que su piel tan dulce abraza, no solo el halarlo le hará sentir corriente, cuando tu mano roce se sentirá diferente. Al tiempo que sobas su pelo tócale la oreja, hazlo inocente sin que ella se dé cuenta, que parezca un accidente, pero uno indecente, que este simple hecho le haga hacerse ideas, que ansíe que la toques de diferentes maneras, que esto empiece a trabajarle mientras tus manos lideran el avance de tu mente, que siempre este esté un paso adelante, que escuches sus respiros mientras se hacen jadeantes. Suficiente con eso, volvamos de momento a su pelo, que con esa mano que acaricias la hagas sentir miedo de las cosas que se vienen, literalmente, ahora que tu mano libre viaje al sur, pero no intentes adelantarte, que esta agarre su cintura, que ella lo sienta, apriétala con fuerzas, hálala hacia a ti, que sienta el contacto de tu cuerpo, bésale los labios sin dejarla con deseos.

Ahora que tu mano le extienda el cuello, muérdele en el lado como ahora está anhelando, besos suaves luego, bajando, un poco de lengua que quede algo mojado arriba y quizás ya esté un poco abajo. La mano en la cintura, ¿la recuerdas? Que empiece un viaje al norte por debajo de su blusa, que tu toque sea suave como una medusa, picante, que la electrifique por la espalda, que ella se desvista sin tener que desnudarla tú. Suéltala de repente que ella abra los ojos, no te rías, mírala con el deseo al borde de tus labios, muérdetelos suave y lentamente, que ella quiera sentirse diferente. Voltéala de una forma rápida, mano izquierda en sus senos la derecha dibujando círculos concéntricos sobre su barriga, que luego simule una línea que baja y que se adentra en su pantalón, pero no toques nada, solo que suelte ese vapor. Vuelve a besarle el cuello, muérdele el oído, dile “en este momento lo tuyo es mío”, y es en este justo y preciso instante que tu mano sujetara su muslo y se verá elegante, pero ni modo, nadie está buscando eso, recuerda que lo que quieres es dejarla sin aliento, que te pida a gritos mientras estas frente a ella, que cuando sienta tu mano en su piel se le abran las piernas.

Sigue besando su cuello y juega con sus senos, sus pezones duros ya están, eso es algo bueno, tu mano libre que suba un poco y que toque su botón, pero no te confundas me refiero al del pantalón, empieza a liberarlo, baja su zipper, con cuidado entra tu mano, ¿sientes el calor?  Esta es la respuesta a lo que has provocado, posa tu mano, sé que sientes todo mojado. Ya está casi desnuda, pero esto no es lo bueno, lo mejor de todo es que ella está llena de deseo, te desea, el pleito esta ganado, es hora de subir la dificultad y ver como acabamos. Acuéstala en la cama, el piso, en el mueble, lo importante es que ella sienta solo lo que siente al tocarla, que no se preocupe por estar parada, sus piernas fallaran cuando le hagas lo que falta. Mírala, vuelve a hacer contacto con los ojos, susúrrale al oído que tienes un antojo, que tienes ganas de verla mientras tú la llevas a tomar un paseo con tu cabeza entre sus piernas, no la escuches, no dejes que hable oposiciones, inmediatamente con tus dedos quiero que la impresiones, que ella sienta, que no piense nada que no sea lo que quiere, lo que su cuerpo en verdad desea. Presiona, que se escurra lo mojado, esos pantis no duraran mucho como quiera abajo, un beso en sus senos acelerara el trabajo y con tu mano libre quita lo que queda ahí tapando.

Este es el momento que más importa, mírala a los ojos, no digas nada, que ambas manos sujeten sus muñecas, que tus piernas dividan sus piernas, que ella empiece a empujar con su cintura, tratando explícitamente de hacer contacto con la tuya, dile que no, que ahora es tu turno, sin perder contacto visual empieza el rumbo a ese néctar que hace momentos que está fluyendo, pero debes besar todo su cuerpo en el trayecto: cuello, sus senos, barriga y cintura, cuando estés llegando frena tu ruta. La sentirás tratar de soltar sus manos, aquí es importante que la sigas mirando humedece tus labios besa los de ella, un beso a cada lado de esa zona que deseas. Ella inmediatamente arqueara todo su cuerpo, no dejes pasar, aprovecha este momento, no lo pienses mucho como todo lo que has hecho, usa tu lengua, estas en todo tu derecho. Déjala que sienta con cada suave viaje de ella, arriba, abajo, besa todo lo que encuentras, recuerda empezar con intensidad moderada, levemente aumenta mientras ella más te manda, pues en este momento su cuerpo no se aguanta, siente tantas cosas que se siente liberada, con su perla en tu boca te das cuenta de esto, tus dedos la exploran, sientes contraer su cuerpo. Te agarra el pelo y te amenaza si paras, confías en tu instinto, respiras profundo y te sumerges de un brinco, esta tan delicioso todo lo que estas probando y sin darte cuenta su cuerpo está temblando.

Una, dos, tres, cuatro veces, sus ojos no se abren, tu mente se estremece, solo escuchas de su boca decir un “ahh”, y sus piernas se cierran como si te fuera a estrangular. No la culpes, ella en verdad no está muy consciente, acabas de provocar algo que ella se merece, no te extrañe si en ese momento se queda dormida, o si sin pensarlo se te tira encima.

Lo que debes saber sobre los implantes “carabelitas”

Un implante es un dispositivo médico diseñado para ser colocado en un paciente para asistir en una tarea específica, sea la estética, la funcional, la curativa o la regenerativa. Todo implante conlleva un proceso de diseño, manufactura, prueba y comercialización, un proceso que garantiza que el producto final será un dispositivo que al paciente solo le dará beneficios y que las tasas de riesgo sobre su uso sean muy bajas.

El diseño de un implante, por lo general, incluye a los mismos médicos especialistas más experimentados en los campos correspondientes y a la vez cuentan con el apoyo de un ingeniero biomédico. Los diseños correspondientes tienden a ser el resultado de un análisis profundo sobre lo que los pacientes necesitan y el mercado aun no cubre, o una mejora a un producto ya existente. La manufactura se realiza bajo las normas más estrictas de producción industrial, siguiendo estándares internacionales y la materia prima de óptima calidad (acero inoxidable, titanio, PEEK, e.t.) para asegurarse que el producto terminado tenga las características adecuadas de resistencia a la fatiga, flexibilidad o rigidez, biocompatibilidad, resistencia a la corrosión, características anti infecciosas y otros. La prueba tiende a ser la etapa más crítica de este proceso; en este momento, el fabricante demostrará que su producto no solamente cumple con estándares mínimos de calidad y manufactura si no que su uso en humanos ha sido probado y que el producto no conlleva ningún riesgo al implantarse en un paciente. Este proceso será supervisado, por lo general, por una agencia reguladora (FDA en E.E.U.U, EMA en Europa) u organismo rector de salud del país, siendo las antes mencionadas las más importantes a nivel mundial. Por último, la comercialización será llevada a cabo por una compañía que puede o no ser el mismo fabricante, siguiendo las normas y estándares que debe conllevar cualquier procedimiento en medicina, incluyendo el seguimiento a cada implante colocado.

Y entonces llegan los “carabelitas”.

Un implante carabelita no es más que un dispositivo médico fabricado con medidas de calidad pobres o que busca ser una copia económica de un implante ya fabricado. Si hacemos referencia al 2do párrafo es fácil entender como un fallo en cualquiera de las etapas del proceso puede representar un riesgo para el paciente, que al final será el usuario definitivo del implante. Veamos algunos ejemplos:

• ·         Un fallo en diseño puede hacer que el implante final no ajuste a la anatomía del paciente, o a la función que debe ejecutar, y al colocarlo el paciente quede con dolor o molestias, o sin poder hacer una función normal;
• ·         Un fallo en manufactura se puede apreciar como un producto que al someterse a un estrés mínimo se rompa por fatiga, ya que la materia prima utilizada no era de la calidad adecuada;
• ·         Un fallo en el período de prueba puede hacer que un implante con potencial de producir infecciones salga al mercado sin conocerse, ya que alguien fue negligente al presentar la data; y
• ·         Un fallo en la comercialización, por más sencillo que parezca, se ejemplificaría como el paciente que está en el quirófano, anestesiado, y debe posponerse la cirugía ya que la compañía o casa comercial no llevo el producto a tiempo. Aquí la carabelita es la compañía.

De estos tenemos ejemplos todos los días: implantes hechos en china como copias de grandes compañías americanas solo para no invertir en el proceso de diseño, compañías extranjeras que fabrican sabiendo que la materia prima que usan no es la más adecuada o cuenta con un mínimo de calidad para fabricar es tipo de implante, negligencias burocráticas en fases de prueba por pura presión económica para que un implante pueda salir al mercado rápido, y compañías que ponen solo sus intereses económicos por delante de la salud de un paciente; esta última es la peor.

Puedes tener un implante con calidad cuestionable siempre y cuando lo comercialices entendiendo los límites que el mismo puede soportar; puedes saber que tu implante tiene el riesgo de producir infecciones, no lo uses en pacientes diabéticos e inmunodeprimidos; puede que tu implante sea una placa no bloqueada, pero por el paciente ser osteoporótico y necesitar un implante bloqueado no se lo vendes; en fin puedes tener un implante cuestionable, carabelita, pero tener un modelo de negocio serio, y esto mejora las cosas.

Pero en nuestro medio se ve de todo: compañías buenas con implantes de última generación, compañías buenas con implantes malos, compañías malas con implantes buenos y por ultimo las compañías malas con implantes carabelitas, a estas hay que tenerle miedo.

Al final todo es cuestión de precio, ¿que es más caro o más barato? Dice un refrán popular que lo barato sale caro, y en este caso es así también. Imagina que llevas a un paciente a cirugía con la primera compañía, la seria con el implante bueno, en este caso el paciente por lo general se operará cuando necesite operarse, sin retrasos, y tendrá un implante que cumplirá su función con una tasa mínima de complicaciones, mayor inversión económica, pero un excelente resultado. Si optamos por la última opción, la compañía mala que vende implantes carabelitas el paciente puede prolongar su estancia en el hospital (se tiende a ser irresponsable con la programación) y el chance de que se complique o en la cirugía o en el postquirúrgico también es mayor, menor inversión inicial, pero más gastos asociados y un resultado que puede no ser favorable.

Ahora, puedes tener el mejor implante del mundo y aun tener complicaciones, esto es estadístico, la pregunta aquí es, ¿Qué hace la compañía distribuidora en estos casos? Una compañía seria, con un suplidor de calidad, tendrán un protocolo para el manejo de las complicaciones que por lo general conlleva a un proceso de evaluación del implante que falló en las instalaciones de manufactura y una determinación de la causa del fallo: mala técnica quirúrgica, mala elección del implante, mala calidad del implante o factores asociados al paciente. Esta capacidad de responder ante una complicación afianza más la relación entre el proveedor, la compañía, el médico y el más importante, el paciente, ya que el paciente tendrá la garantía de que hay manos responsables cuidando de él.

En resumen, los implantes salvan o mejoran vidas todos los días, la cuestión está en saber quién te suple lo que usas, qué proceso sigue ese fabricante para producir ese dispositivo, quién lo hace llegar al tu cirugía y qué tipo de responsabilidad tiene para contigo, como paciente. Recuerda que al final del día, es tu cuerpo que recibe el implante, eres tú quien necesita de la ayuda de los profesionales de la salud, y tienes el poder de decidir lo que se usa en tu cuerpo.

¿Cuál es tu decisión?

Are you selling?

The Florida International Medical Expo, or FIME, was celebrated from august 2nd to Thursday the 4th at the Miami Convention Center, and I have to say, it was an eye opening experience. Having been in medical sales for 4 years now and having attended medical congresses and courses, the FIME was so different to the other events I had gone to. There is a main reason for this and that is that here the focus was not medical conferences or the learning, or the CME points, nope, it was just the creation of new commercial relationships between distributors and providers, between doctors and new equipment, and hospital administrative staff and new suppliers. It was a big orgy for the medical devices industry in which deals were made, others rejected and, in the end, a huge load of money moved around this week in which Miami Beach burst into the tourism that typically drives its local economy.

Safe to say that this event offers a display of the best names in medical equipment, and sales reps and managers, or, does it? Having been assigned a lousy place because of remodeling, we were placed somewhere that only by chance you had people going by us, poor location, poor visibility, and poor neighbors. I have to say I was a little disappointed, expecting to see people so skilled at selling that deals would be struck in a frequent manner, but no, apparently as a business, after you've made your ~$5,000 dollar investment in setting up a booth, spent around ~$1,500 in flights, another $1,000 in hotel and who knows how much in on the road expenses, you do not even sit down to analyze who the hell is representing your company, or presenting your product offerings.

One of the advantages of having this awful location was that to the right I had a Korean company, and to the right a Chinese one, which helped me to set theory and law on the point I am trying to make. Let's break it down:

The South Korean company thought ahead, not only they brought in a woman (which is always a plus, what?, sue me) but this lady could speak Korean, English and a heck of a good Spanish. Here I have to say that this expo is happening in Miami, international focus, so you need to get people who know at least English and Spanish, for the latinos that will show up will be quite a few, and so it happened. At the same time they brought in this dude from Latin American sales from one of their distributors, who understand this market, and he was there aiding in establishing new relationships. All in all, the neighbors from the right not only knew their product, had multi language skills and cross cultural understanding and resources, but also knew the market they were targeting, their competition and their advantages against them. They were kicking ass with each customer they received.

Now with the Chinese. These fellas brought in one of the company owners who had the communication skills of a 1756 telephone (analyze that!), one of the managers and a "sales" employee. The last 2, women, spoke English and Chinese and were the ones doing all the contact and the selling. Needless to say we had to aid them when Spanish-speaking-only customers walked by, which, to me, would automatically knock out points for interest, for communication is crucial in business relationships. What struck me the most was the lack of coordination between them as a "team", from not even sharing price strategies and giving out crazy numbers when asked for prices, as with the lousy misinformed manager, who didn't even clearly understand the financials behind their operation, which prompted the not being able to understand how to negotiate with potential customers, and me, listening to the so common: "too expensive". It was so funny, for at one moment a customer from Brazil walks by and asks for price, and the manager said: "it is very expensive, $200 dollars". I do not have to say that these "sellers" had no understanding of the market, competitor prices or strategies, and even asked me at some point to call the competitors offices in China, to ask for price for a competing product. This is not wrong, but the timing? well, it was the last day of the expo.

So I don't know, call me picky, but walking around the fair I would have liked to feel approached to, talked to, overwhelmed with offers, call my attention, offer me stuff; goddammit, sell me something!

I can't complain, the lousier the competition, the easier I get it to promote what I've got to offer. I think it is basic things like dominating your product specs, understanding the market, elaborating a simple sales pitch with your key selling points and dismantling the competitors' strategies that will provide a nice ground to be effective at selling, all of this combined with the appropriate communication skills will allow you to maximize your investment in this kind of event a next time.

I am just looking forward to the next expo, to see what kind of surprises I will get.

Si dejo que una noche hable: Cansado

A veces me inspiro y dejo que mi mente empiece a soltar baba, saliva, lo que agarra en el momento depende de como me estoy sintiendo. Así nació "Cansado", a quien le debo agregar música, pero haré pronto.

Cansado

Buscare una libreta para escribir lo que pienso

No sé si te interese pero quizás haga un cuento

De esos que les gustan escuchar a la gente

Que activan todo tu morbo y que juegan con tu mente

Resulta que este niño se levanta cada día

Se come su comida y agarra su mochila

Sale con ilusiones listo pa tragarse el mundo

Pero en este tiempo la vida dura un segundo

Solo el trayecto de ir a perseguir sus sueños

Está plagado y lleno de vulgares insectos

Personas que no piensan, que no sienten, que te insultan

Que por ser diferente tu camino dificultan

Pero el niño sigue caminando hacia su escuela

No le importa el abuso que en su casa se presenta

Que algunos compañeros lo insulten ni le hablen feo

Que su maestra lo amenace y no le importe un bledo

Cansado está el niño de que no te importe

Cansado de que esto valga menos que el deporte

De que las noticias solo hablen de balaceras

Cuando lo que él quiere es graduarse de la escuela

Cansado está el niño, ya quiere ser hombre

Cansado de que no pueda tomar sus decisiones

Cansado y no sabe, menos se imagina el chico

Que cuando eres adulto quieres volver a ser niño

Dale vuelta a la ruleta, ya son los 90,

El niño ya es un joven listo pa cortar cabezas

Se inscribe en la uni, coge un semestre

Pero debe vender droga casi pa pagar sin creces

Luego de joder tanto se gradúa de abogado

Viendo tanta tele cree que será millonario

Pero la realidad es que en la calle no hay trabajo

El tipo coge un taxi y de noche apuesta a gallos

Siguen las noticias, diputados, funcionarios

Historias de corruptos, de billetes y lavado

De drogas, traficantes, implicados del gobierno

Y como están impunes le trabaja en el cerebro

Se le hace una idea, un plan descabellado,

Conoce mucha gente, es popular en su barrio

Habla con un tipo que dice que es adinerado

Proyectan un plan para lanzarse a diputado

Cansado está el niño de que no te importe

Cansado de que esto valga menos que el deporte

De que las noticias solo hablen de balaceras

Cuando lo que él quiere es graduarse de la escuela

Cansado está el niño, él ya es un hombre

Cansado de que otros se hagan ricos sin que importe

Cansado y es por esto que corre a diputado

Quizás de esta manera el ayude al afectado

6 años han pasado, con gusto les informo

Nuestro diputado, se ha convertido en ogro

De todas sus promesas no ha cumplido ninguna

Pero tiene una jeepeta y reservo un viaje a la luna

Se ha puesto a candidato como presidente

Ha hecho varios tratos con los indiferentes

Que tienen el dinero, son dueños de la gente

La tele los ayuda a diseminar lo que quieren

El niño es un adulto que no sabe que era niño

El joven es político que es lo mismo que un mimo

Emulan que trabajan con objetos de mentira

Así mismo te engañan y te venden fantasías

En cierto momento el político fue un niño

Pero la sociedad lo ha convertido en otro pillo

Es por nuestro apoyo que se creen indestructibles

Nos quejamos que nos dañan pero les damos misiles

Cansado está el pueblo de que no te importe

Cansado el país entero de que lo provoques

Cansado de ser títeres, simples marionetas

Que crees que somos tuyos y que nos gobiernas

Cansado de la tele que me vende tus mentiras

Cansado de que seas tú la octava maravilla

Busca otro pendejo que aguante tus metáforas

Este que está aquí está cansado de apoyártelas.

Key Selling Points: ¿conoces tu producto?

Key Selling Points: ¿conoces tu producto?

Por: José Miguel Rodríguez

Quiero empezar haciéndote una pregunta sencilla: ¿conoces los productos que vendes?, y puede que me respondas algo más sencillo aún: sí. Pero, ¿de verdad conoces lo que estas vendiendo?

Creemos que sabemos, conocemos nuestro producto de arriba abajo, su color, su tamaño, su año de fabricación, su diseñador, el país de donde proviene y las certificaciones que lo avalan, sin embargo, esto no significa que sepamos los puntos claves de venta que posee nuestro producto, sus key selling points.

Todos los carros tienen 4 ruedas, un guía, transmisión, puertas, asientos, entonces, ¿por qué unos elijen entre un modelo y otro? McDonalds vende hamburguesas, sin embargo vende más que Burger King, ¿por qué?

Los puntos clave de venta (PCV) nos ayudarán a destacar nuestro producto de la competencia, así de sencillo, es por esto que siquiera existe una competencia entre compañías. Cada empresa puede tener PCV definidos que sean propios del producto, propios del servicio con el cual se ofrece ese producto, o propios de una combinación de productos. Acompaño con algunos ejemplos:

• ·    Propio del producto - Smile shutter: Sony revolucionó el mercado de las fotos automáticas con el Smile Shutter, esta tecnología te permite tomar fotos, sin activar ningún botón, solo con sonreir. Imagina esos momentos de fotos grupales en las  cuales tenías que poner un tiempo automático, o cuando querías tomar un “selfie” y se te hacía incómodo hacer la foto, pues con el Smile Shutter solo tenías que sonreír y listo, la foto quedaba plasmada. Sony lanzó esta tecnología en 2 cámaras y luego en sus teléfonos celulares. Esto es un ejemplo perfecto de un producto con un PCV claro, una tecnología exclusiva que lo diferencian del resto. Todos querían un Sony solo por esto.
• ·    Propio del servicio – Amazon es el ejemplo perfecto. Todo el mundo vende por internet: Ebay, Alibaba, Mercadolibre, sin embargo, Amazon es la más usada a nivel mundial, ¿por qué?, por su perfil de servicio al cliente. Según la escala Temkin de servicio al cliente, Amazon.com tiene un 79% de aceptación en comparación con la industria de tiendas online, que promedia solo 20%. Entonces, puedes tener un producto promedio, o igual a tu competencia, pero si tu oferta de servicio al cliente es buena puedes opacar a la competencia bien fácil.
• ·     Propio de la combinación de productos – Tricom: honestamente no recuerdo quien fue el primero, pero si sé que Tricom fue líder en la industria en combinar los servicios de cable, teléfono e internet en un solo paquete, forzando así a otras compañías como Codetel (ahora Claro) a hacer lo mismo, ya que se vieron amenazados en perder una gran cantidad de la clientela, pues ya no tenían que tener 2 o 3 proveedores, 2 o 3 facturas y 2 o 3 pagos al mes, ahora, todo se resolvía con una sola visita a una estafeta de pagos, así como los problemas o inconvenientes con un solo representante de servicios.

Estas son 3 maneras o ejemplos simples de cómo compañías pueden encontrar, desarrollar o crear PCV. Atendiendo a esto, te pregunto de nuevo, ¿conoces los productos que vendes? No respondas, primero déjate saber si eres capaz de decir 3 PCV de cualquier producto de tu cartera, o de tu servicio o de tus “bundles” o paquetes (si tu compañía tiene alguno).

Debemos entender que vender en el medio de hoy no es igual a vender en el medio de ayer. Todos tus clientes tienen acceso a internet y también la competencia, vender hoy es más difícil que ayer porque opciones hay muchas, y tienes que ser capaz de identificar como tu producto hace una diferencia en tu futuro cliente. Aquí reside la importancia de los PCV, cada uno debe ir orientado a presentar una solución para un potencial problema:

• ·      Smile Shutter: no tienes que esperar riéndote como un tonto a que se tome la foto.
• ·      Servicio de Amazon: tu compra esta garantizada a ser placentera, si no, te haremos feliz como sea.
• ·      Paquete de Tricom: no tienes que tener 3 facturas, o 3 llamadas a servicio al cliente, y por tener todo con nosotros, te damos tu descuento.

Ahora si, respóndeme la pregunta, ¿conoces los productos que vendes?, te incentivo a que te sientes 1 hora con un cuaderno y hagas notas, ¿cuáles son los PCV de cada producto que vendes, de tu servicio?, ¿cómo beneficia cada uno de estos a tu cliente? Creeme, después de que analices esto, vender será mucho más facil