Highlight Reel:
- Team meeting – this week the LT team we went around and shared a favourite toy from childhood (FYI: baseballs, batons, skip balls, barbies, lego, dinky cars, and old school roller skates). When we MUST “go around the room, and…”, I really try to make the invitation more than name, role, bla…talking about toys is “serious fun” – we build trust when we get to know each other and relate in small ways.
- Dogs in the Office – this is now an official policy at work, and so far it’s amazing! And I haven’t even been in the office! And I’m a cat person! But there are a LOT of great photos and excited messages on MS Teams – people are amped.
- Leadership/Executive Coaching – I have been challenged to come up with a visual/metaphor for my personal idea of leadership. I love this invitation. I was toying with “orchardist”, but it wasn’t right (something about trees being rooted in place and producing until they get cut, die or burn…). I’m currently working with “butterfly farmer”. I will draw that at some point. My coach keeps asking me to talk about ME instead of my team (there is something about being visible and vulnerable that I resist). But my team is so great! Let me tell you all about them and the incredible work they do…haha
- Liberating Structures Victoria User Group Meet-up: We met in Hatley Castle this week (you know, X-men school for the gifted) because we are extremely lucky to be well-connected to Royal Roads University. We worked through agreement-certainty matrix, which I still struggle with. It’s a great idea (examine problems and solutions to ensure you have a good match, avoid using a “simple” solution for a “complex” or “complicated” problem, based on Cynefin, etc. I’m still not comfortable, TBH. I think I need to be a participant in a good execution of it and ask a million questions to better understand the story behind the model. We also took a minute to send some love to one of our dear friends and user group members who is undergoing treatment.
- Internet “Service Providers” Telus vs. Shaw – This is not really work related (except I’m online all the time, but honestly it’s really a customer service rant) – I switched from Telus (back) to Shaw this week. Who hasn’t made that switch a few times, amiright? Anyway, this annoyed the hell out of me: when Shaw came to my door (literally) offering $55 a month for 2 years instead of about $115 a month with Telus, I got in touch with Telus FIRST to give them a chance to meet or beat it. I was very clear about the deets and what I wanted: meet or beat it. Instead of just saying YES (or forwarding my email to someone who COULD say yes), they tried to give ME a bunch of tasks to do (call this number, talk to this specific department, ask them to review your bla bla options…come on man!). So, I switch. Then, only after Shaw got in touch with them re: my switch, they reach out (but again, they issue ME a friggin’ task via email, to call THEM…ugh…) offering to meet the Shaw deal PLUS a $300 credit. I was also treated to an explanation about how their departments are disconnected and how it was, in a way, sorta my fault that they lost me as a customer? Lame.
Stuff I saw/read/watched:
- The Truth About Stories – audio (Massey Lectures) and it’s also a book . Our incredibly smart and talented colleague Becca is leading an internal book club at BCcampus about this book. Turnout is huge and we’re loving the shared experience of reading/listening, and the conversations that follow. This is part of our ongoing personal and professional learning and work to support our participation in reconciliation.
- Pema Chodron has long been an important guide in my life. This week, right on point (from the newsletter) – this is a central theme for me lately:
Although it is embarrassing and painful, it is very healing to stop hiding from yourself. It is healing to know all the ways that you’re sneaky, all the ways that you hide out, all the ways that you shut down, deny, close off, criticize people, all your weird little ways. You can know all that with some sense of humor and kindness. By knowing yourself, you’re coming to know humanness altogether. We are all up against these things. We are all in this together.