I recently had an interesting conversation with someone about doing too much and burning out. This is a very real situation that people face not only in their work lives but also in their personal lives. I used the metaphor of setting a table and it seemed to have resonated with them and perhaps it will resonate with you.
Continue readingWhat do you write when you have nothing to write about?!
I find it quite amusing that the only thing I can write about fluidly is the thing I cant seem to do at the moment. I can’t finish the articles. I have twelve drafts and I just can’t be bothered to finish any of them. It’s like this with a lot of personal projects, but why is that, why can’t I finish personal projects? Shall we dwell in my mind for a couple of minutes? Come on it will be fun, I promise…
Continue readingChaos and the junkies that shoot it.
Chaos is a business drug that too many people are addicted too. I have had the pleasure of working alongside chaos junkies for much of my professional career, and as with any addiction it has some real impacts on those addicted and those around them.
Lets have a look at what a chaos junkie looks like, how we can spot them, and what we can do to help!
Continue readingSometimes I just don’t want to anymore.
It’s always surprising how I find myself in spaces where I just don’t want to anymore. I don’t understand the reason for doing things and I certainly don’t understand what the effort is being invested in.
Continue readingFighting Schrodinger on your projects… I want the cat to live!
Schrodinger was hanging it out with Einstein over some tea. Long story short, there is a cat in a box with some poison and I think I found a link between this crazy tea party and how projects are run.
Continue readingThe Isolation Onion, making sense of why lockdown isn’t fun anymore.
You are probably in or just came out of some form of lockdown. This isn’t easy and we need to acknowledge that. Being in isolation for a prolonged period, you realize that it’s like an onion, it has many layers and makes you cry!
Continue readingBuilding to Successful convergence: People, they make or break convergence.
Building on an article published by my good friend Sally Acton from Torque Solutions, “Employee Experience: Wants + Empathy = Clarity”. This is the second article in the series, the first can be found here. If you haven’t read the articles please do so, enjoy and get in touch if you have questions. @wernerSmit or @SallyActon
Building to Successful convergence: Article 2 – The People of Convergence
In article one we discussed the four convergence factors:
- Trust Building
- Trust Erosion
- Convergence Blockers
- and Convergence Enablers
We are all businesses and everything has a contract…even your pets.
In the current climate of the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic, in case someone is reading in the future, I’ve been reading a lot of articles on the observations and emotions that people are experiencing. People like you and me are struggling to balance all the different facets of our lives suddenly colliding in this new reality. People feel torn between elements that are normally very much removed from each-other by time and location. I will honestly admit that my life has become a smoothie maker of all of my responsibilities, and guilt doesn’t taste great.
Continue readingBuilding to Successful convergence: A series on telling the truth
Building on an article published by my good friend Sally Acton from Torque Solutions, we had a chat and decided to collaborate and write a small series of articles, about 5 or so, building on her original post “Employee Experience: Wants + Empathy = Clarity”. If you haven’t read the article please do so, we reference it throughout the series and having a background will be helpful. What follows is the first of what hopefully will be many more collaborative writings to take place, enjoy and get in touch if you have questions. @wernerSmit or @SallyActon
Building to Successful convergence: Article 1 – The Convergence Factors Four
The original article was easy to read and understand but deep in its implications. In these times of rapid change and fear, knowing what’s going on is a vital part of survival. Especially for your mental health and also for your contributions to the business you help build and the homes you are in. Whether you are an employee or employer, everyone is suffering from fear, uncertainty and doubt, or as many of us know it FUD, it makes the world go round.
In an effort to reduce “the FUD” the concept of sharing openly, for example “where the business is” and asking for insights from those around us was the basic premise of the original article, it specifically focused on financial statements but this could be true for anything.
Continue readingI saw a naked man, and it got to me.
I had the most saddening, almost defeating moment in mid January 2020. Driving my usual route to catch the usual train, I stopped at the usual traffic light, and that was the last thing that was usual about this day.
Mind, on the rocks?! 