Fun Theory

I came across this at Steve Roesler's site.

Which got me thinking - if we look at things from a different perspective, how can we apply this sort of approach in work, in church - without trivialising core activities?

The answer, I think, lies in two key elements.

Firstly, ensuring that we don't lose sight of our objective (in this case encouraging people to use the stairs).

Secondly, and probably most importantly, to look at the required activity from the viewpoint of the participants. Lecturing people about the value of using the stairs would have had some impact, engaging them and allowing them to express themselves is clearly much more successful.

Hands up for change

I think I've mentioned before that we're in the middle of a major re-organisation at work - many of us changing roles, all of us changing the way we work (culture). I was speaking to a colleague today about the process, and the associated frustrations, which led me to a half-formed thought about the stages of changing roles. Driving home it grew a bit. It's still rough around the edges, but...

I think that there are four changes that are needed when people stay in an organisation, but change their remits.

1 - Handover

This happens before the change is implemented, and involves discussing the role with the next incumbent; highlighting issues; passing on information etc.

2 - Hand holding

This straddles the change date and covers helping your colleague settling in by taking them to meetings; introducing them to key contacts; answering their questions as they take the reins.

3 - Hands free

This should cover the first few months - being there when called upon; finishing any tasks that require continuity.

4 - "Hands off!"

This is when the new postholder is confident in the role and wants to stamp their own mark on the job. It should include a 'thank you' and a 'please go away now'.

Self-absorbed

There are a lot of things changing in my life just now, and when I think about it I tend to think about the negative aspects - additional responsibilities at work; change of office location with a resulting sense of loss; illness for my dad meaning travelling each weekend; etc.

On Wednesday of last week I was feeling particularly low. Too many deadlines due on Friday; a sense of remoteness in my new office – relationships still to be formed, alliances and politics still to be identified and understood; physically a bit ‘under the weather’. Generally I was feeling a bit sorry for myself.

Late in the afternoon I found myself staring out of the window, sort of wondering what to do next, really just wondering when I could go home. Then I noticed the setting sun send its warm, golden rays through the grey clouds that covered most of the sky. As I stood there mesmerised, the sunset grew in intensity turning to a vivid red that changed the whole perspective.

Nothing had changed in terms of the pressures that I felt, but my mood had picked up considerably.

On Thursday morning, the sky was clear and blue as I drove through the Perthshire countryside. There was some low lying mist lingering before the sun warmed up. The trees were clinging to the last of their leaves. The sunrise was beautiful – not particularly dramatic – just beautiful. The yellow glow hinting at the rising sun, still hidden behind the hills. My spirits soared.

There are no photos to accompany this entry. I did have my camera with me, and I thought about stopping on a couple of occasions, but I decided that I wanted to enjoy the moment. So I turned the radio off, temporarily suspending my acquisition of information, opened myself to the beauty around me, and thanked God that I was alive and blessed in so many ways.

Sometimes we’re too self-absorbed to see things in perspective; and we are too ready to focus on our problems rather than revel in the joy that we can find if we would only open our eyes to it.

How cool is this??

This is such a great idea - I love it. Seems to me like the ideal decor for an office.

By the way - I decided to come back... but you know that already!!

Having a break

There's a lot going on in my life at the moment - work, family, stuff - and anyone reading this will know that my posting has been erratic (quantity and quality) for several months now. Rather than limp along in this way, I'm going to take a few weeks away from blogging to re-focus, re-calibrate, and re-think.

Will I be back?

In the immortal words of Kenny Dalglish: "Maybe's aye; maybe's no!"

I will commit to one more entry (before the end of October) - to let you know the outcome of my ponderings.

London Bridge is falling down

While in London we visited Tower Bridge (built to ease the pressure on London Bridge – hence the title for this entry).

I wasn’t as convinced about doing it as the rest of my family for two reasons. Firstly, it seemed to be a bit tourist-y, but then again, we were tourists! More pertinently, my limited head for heights has become almost non-existent in my middle age, so the prospect of climbing 43 metres above the Thames wasn’t altogether appealing. But the lure of the view carried the argument, and we went for it.

There is a reasonably good exhibition about how the bridge was constructed, as well as a chance to walk around some of the original engine rooms that were used to raise the bridge. But the best bit is the high bit – crossing the walkways between the two towers. Again, there’s interesting information provided, but the views are stunning, especially on a nice summer’s day.

As an aside, they say that you can judge the prosperity of a city by the number of cranes in the skyline. Recession, what recession?

Lyrics

"Hope is never light years away"

A phrase that leapt out from Athlete's new album - Black Swan.

The track is called "The Unknown".