Up there and out there

Day 42 (Monday 11th January 2016)

42 degrees from a light source is the required angle of view, of airborne water droplets,
for the vibrant arc of a rainbow to appear. A rainbow is an optical illusion and the spectrum
range we see is caused by the human eye's ability to perceive colour.

It gives me great pleasure to introduce you to Tony Jackson, the author of today's inspirational post. Tony is the founder and Managing Director of Chelsham Consulting Limited (http://chelsham.co). You can read his blog via the company's website and also see more of his stunning photography (there are some examples as part of the post below - I am not responsible for any of the beautiful illustrations that accompany this piece, other than the song at the end). Tony started training to be an accountant on leaving university, but soon realised that he preferred people to numbers. Via recruitment he came into HR and has worked for some of the world's leading professional service firms (including PwC and Simmons & Simmons), before moving into not-for-profit as Head of HR for Macmillan Cancer Support. He established Chelsham Consulting in 2013, on leaving Macmillan, and is now a highly valued coach, facilitator and specialist consultant on OD and people-related matters. Tony is cultured and creative - he enjoys travel and learning more about people and places around the globe. You can connect with him on Twitter, his handle is @JacksonT0ny.

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Up there and down here.

Yin and yang.

Me and you.

Comet tails and coal dust.

Out there and in here.

It took me a while to find my way to this blog. And to be honest it’s a reworking of one I have written before. About where one finds one inspiration. For me it’s unquestionably out there.

When I need solace or inspiration my amateur photography can be an excellent ‘third place’.

In 2015 I started experimenting by including some of the results in my and my company’s Twitter feeds – without a particularly obvious objective other than to share and maybe to introduce people to the idea of seeking inspiration in new and different places.

For me there has always been something truly inspiring about wandering around – for example through the streets of a city – and finding views, angles, perspectives.

I’ve blogged before about how this can lift my spirits. Lift them out of the dust

It can be challenging arriving into a new place with me – I am less interested in the ‘set pieces’ than I am in the people, the colours, the ambience, the vibe, the unexpected and the sky. Oh the sky! Some say there is too much of it in my shots. Well I just love the sky.

In a museum or art gallery I’m soaking up the overall impact and keen to see what’s in the next room whilst others are methodically studying each individual item on display. That’s OK by the way – I’m happy doing what I’m doing and I’m right here if you need me. Right here.

Plonk me down at an outside table with a book, or a loved one, or a new friend and (crucially) a view and I can be at my best. Happened again not so long ago – a really productive conversation which would have been that bit less productive if I hadn’t had the stunning sea-view from a rather nice restaurant in Brighton.

There’s evidence for this in my MBTI profile. Off the scale on E (energy from the world around me etc.) with that very telling OOPS on Intimacy – so I can be energised by being on my own or with a small group of people whilst surrounded by the inspiring world at large. Also a clear preference for N so don’t bother me too much with the detail in the gallery, don’t ask me to study any one thing for too long.

At its extreme I end up doing things like taking a photo of the cupola outside the open window whilst everyone else is excited by the fresco on the wall in the room inside. Yes this happened this year:

When I’m stuck on something in my home office I pop out into my local area to see what’s going on. And often end up running back to capture the resulting ideas.

Some of my clearest ever thinking has been inspired by the mountains and sky in Andalucía (again I have previously blogged on this subject Complete.Clarity.Of.Thought )

As an HRD you would catch me “wandering around”. People notice what leaders do of course. For me it was combining a desire to be visible and ‘grabbable’ as the HR guy, whilst also seeking an infusion of ideas & thoughts by simply being out and about. So I would tour the floors without a specific destination. Some would say that’s a waste of time – I think it was some of the best time I ever spent.

My preferred way of breaking an impasse (ER or other) would often be a walk around the park or along the river with someone.

And to this day I can be inspired by what is going on outside the meeting room. Don’t worry – I’m right here but I might just be at my best if the world is more present in the room.

Anyway back to the photography – my Twitter feed is now dominated by my and other people’s photography. It’s part of who I am, so I am revealing the authentic me. I have woven my own photos into my company’s brand and its new website. But crucially some of them really show me (and you) where I get my inspiration from. The things that are ‘out there’……

That building, that fountain, that statue, that shadow, those puddles, the clouds, the sky. Oh the sky! Those comet tails!

That’s me. And you? Where does your inspiration come from?

"Out there" from Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The long walk

Day 41 (Sunday 10th January 2016)

41 is a common slang term in Mexico used to refer to male homosexuality. This came about
due to the Dance of the 41 when, in 1901, Mexican police arrested 41 homosexuals who had been
attending a private drag ball at a home in Calle la Paz, Mexico City. The 41 were convicted and
conscripted into the army as punishment. Homophobia is still prevalent in much of Mexico.
Even in the late 20th century the number 41 was stigmatised across the country, with it being avoided
as a house or room number and not allocated in payrolls or as a vehicle registration number.
41 is still used as a negative way of referring to gay men, however same-sex marriage is now legal in Mexico City and a charity has been established called "Honour 41", which celebrates Latino/a LGBT role models.
Picture: “Los 41 Maricones” (The 41 Queers) by Jose Guadalupe Posada, 1901 (Wikipedia)

Today's blog is by Meg Peppin, the highly-esteemed and much-respected OD specialist and founder of the MP Partnership, which has kept her and others busy, helping people and organisations to thrive, since 2003. She is warm and supportive, very popular and active on social media (her Twitter handle is @OD_optimist ), but, take it from me, she is even better in real life. Meg writes a wonderful blog, "Halls are made for madness". She is erudite, perceptive and entertaining - a great companion to the theatre or for a swift G&T and a chat after work. It has taken Meg and I a few years to get to know each other, but I am so glad that I/we made the effort. She shared some of my highlights of 2015 and I hope that more people benefit from getting to know her and working with her during the course of this year, as she is a delight.

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What trail are you leaving behind you as you/we travel through life on our long walk?  

Periwinkle trails on the beach at low tide

Is it coal dust, a smudge on a cheek, a crunch underfoot, a piece of grit that we can’t quite shift - a sinister and unseen inhalation that can poison – so volatile in the air that with the right (or wrong) conditions it can spontaneously combust? 

Coal dust explosion

Or perhaps comets, also dust – oh but when the right conditions exist that dust can shine and burst across our horizons and leave a trail that we won’t forget; a trail of sparkles that lights the way for us.  

My coal dust moment; an unexpected reaction, unwelcome, uncomfortable, unlovely.  Embarrassing.   The coal dust that exploded lingered from something old, couldn’t wash it away, a thought hidden away.  Catalysed by something completely different - an unanticipated forceful demand, an insistence. The coal dust, a soft barb, an indirect criticism, surfacing occasionally, just out of awareness but bothering me.

My comet moments; more of these, many more.

The day I didn’t turn up for work. Duty manager at the weekend for 600 reluctant workers. I was utterly committed to them and being fully there at the unpopular shifts.  And yet, once - only once, I didn’t update my calendar. When I picked up my messages I heard “where are you Meg?”.  A Sunday where I didn’t turn up.  Mortified on Monday, I arrived fully prepared and willing for disciplinary action.  The most human of managers just looked at me and said softly “Are you OK? We were worried”.  Rather than focussing on what was unlike me, he focussed on what was like me and offered tenderness into the conversation.  What did that leave me with? Knowing what sort of manager I wanted to be inspired me.  I realise now too, as I think about it - he would have been brave not to discipline me in that place. His light trail still lingers, all these years on.

Another comet that lit the way; a hand from a relative stranger, a real hand, gripping mine and saying “come with me” when I couldn’t walk on my own.  I can still feel that moment many years ago, and I often have walked towards what is painful and difficult as a result of what was left by her.   So bright, so loving.  She said afterwards she didn’t know why she did it. But, she did.

However long or short our time – I think of life as the long walk.   Sometimes we’re with people, but it’s always our own individual walk.  Alongside us, if we’re lucky, we have our loves, and other walkers at times – some of them we don’t know and we can’t choose.  Remember, the ones that leave the dust trail – they always go – you pass them, or they pass you, but they go.

Coal dust, it’s nasty stuff. Sometimes it sticks to us, and we can’t shake it off. If you’re in any type of position of power – you can choose I reckon; whether you want to deposit a piece of grit that could combust.  Or, when you are walking alongside another, you could leave a light trail to light up some of their walk.

Aren’t we all in a position of power to determine what we want left behind, as we walk?

A Chance Encounter

Day 40 (Saturday 9th January 2016)

40 years - the time it takes the planet Venus to return to its original position in the sky.
It has a pentagonal orbit, requiring 8 years to complete. Venus retrogrades (appears to
travel backwards from our perspective on Earth) for circa 40 days once every two years -
due to being such a bright object Venus was considered an important planet in many ancient religions -
it has been proposed that the 40 day retrograde period influenced times in the Bible and other religious records
Noah's flood lasted 40 days; Moses wandered in the wilderness with the  for 40 days;
Jesus was tempted for 40 days and nights; Buddah fasted for 40 days before attaining Samadhi.
Photo: Venus (brightest), Jupiter (second-brightest) and star Regulus make a triangle. The comet C/2014 is to their left. Composite image – created from two images (sky and landscape) – taken on July 22, 2015 by Marco Nero in New South Wales, Australia.

This post is by Jacky Hilary, an HR professional based in West Sussex, in the south of England. (A perfect location for her as she loves walking the beautiful South Downs). She and I met via Twitter, her handle is @JackyHilary. She is a cultured lady (speaking excellent Italian and French as well as English) with an appreciation of the Arts (especially theatre and film) as you will see from her post below. Jacky is a true HR generalist with expertise within the not-for-profit sector. She is a Board member of Aspire - a recently founded social enterprise running adult and community education in West Sussex. She is currently seeking her next work challenge - those who have had her as a colleague commend her for her professionalism, efficiency, knowledge, resilience and integrity.

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"Comet tails and coal dust"

While I love the sound of this advent blog theme curated by Kate Griffiths-Lambeth, I couldn’t think of anything appropriate to write – and I have been ill since she and I discussed it.  Starting to feel better, a memory came back to me in the shower that seemed to sum up the weirdness and wonder of life.

I was driving home from work last summer, south along the M23.  It had been a hot day and it was a beautiful evening.  And then the coal dust.  Ahead of me, near Gatwick, cars were backing up and starting to form a traffic jam.  We slowed and slowed until finally we were at a complete standstill.  

Clearly there had been an accident ahead.  Some cars around me were taking their chance and going the wrong way up the adjacent slip road.  I toyed with the idea, but became alarmed at the anarchic behaviour which nearly caused another crash as people did random U-turns, and decided not to follow.  In true British fashion, we all sat there for some time.  I listened to the radio for a while, realising with relief that my husband would not be worried as he was away.  Eventually, you get hot and bored.  I got out of the car and ventured to speak to the man in front.  As soon as I moved towards him, he got back in his car.  I think this was coincidental!  

I turned and walked the other way and was greeted by a jovial man in a military-style uniform.  He turned out to be a police officer, also trying to get home, same as me.  I learnt that he did a desk job based in Surrey.  

The police officer and I stood in the middle lane of the M23 in the stunning evening sunshine and discussed our children, work, driving, Shakespeare.  One of his children was taking part in a Shakespeare play.  I am a Bard enthusiast so this proved a fruitful topic.  

He told me about driving courses he had done, about how you learn to check your environment very carefully when you are doing over 100mph, how many drivers behave on the road as if they’re in world of their own, and what he could tell about the crash from our considerable distance away.  

Surrey Police

He also told me a lot about policing in the 21st century.  It was one of those rare, wonderful times when your comet trail coincides with that of someone you would never normally come into contact with.  

Half an hour later the traffic started to move.  The police officer and I shook hands, said goodbye, smiled warmly at one another, got back in our cars and went our separate ways – me with more driving awareness and he maybe with more enthusiasm for Shakespeare.

To my knowledge, there was no loss of life on the M23 that evening, as I saw no related news coverage whatsoever afterwards.  So much for the coal dust. 

Oddly, looking back, this impromptu meeting is one of my best memories of 2015 – the comet tail.

Chance Encounter by Stasia Burrington

Coal Dust and Women’s Work

Day 39 (Friday 8th January 2016)

39 percent of UK transport users would consider using a driverless car,
this number rose to 62% amongst young urban professionals, according to research conducted by
Transport Systems Catapult on behalf of the Department for Transport, the Department for Business
Innovation and Skills and Innovate UK.
Photo of Toyota Prius self-driving car Photo: EPA/GOOGLE

Today's blog is by Rachael Burnham, an excellent Learning and Development expert based in Manchester, with a particular interest in informal and blended learning. She has worked as a specialist consultant for over 14 years and is highly rated by her clients. She started her career working for a voluntary organisation preparing young people for leaving home and this gave her the opportunity to deliver training for the first time. She was good at it and enjoyed helping people grow, hence she started working in a more conventional staff development and training capacity. Rachael is active on social media, her Twitter handle is @BurnhamLandD and she writes a great blog: L&D Matters. Outside work she values spending time with her family and is a keen jazz fan, as well as having a passion for gardening.

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When the theme for this year’s Advent Blog was announced of ‘Comets and Coal Dust’, I was immediately drawn to that second part – Coal Dust – and transported back to my earliest childhood memories.

We lived in a terraced house in that part of Blackburn known as Wilpshire.  Our house was part of a little row along an un-made up road, which you went down to under a bridge.  Our house was somewhere in the middle of the row and behind the houses, at the end of the small gardens, was a path that ran along the back of the houses.   And the other side of that path was a stream, which I loved.  

Across the stream was a field in which cows were kept.  In those days, it was quite typical to leave a baby or small child out in a pram in the garden unattended and I remember looking at those cows with deep fascination and that they seemed to look right back at me!

Our house had coal fires. Just the phrase ‘coal dust’ brought to mind the sights, sounds and smells of those fires.  

My mother on her hands and knees bent down sweeping out the hearth, 

the grey, pinkish ash, 

the distinctive sounds of the coal tongs and poker knocking against the grate and slightly acrid smell of the coal.
  

To be honest I don’t really remember the sight of the fire lit with the flames – what I remember is the big brass fire guard which dominated the fire place – a sort of metallic cage 

and in front of this on the mat, in the warmth, I remember building wooden brick towers 

and playing with a pull-along elephant.  

I still have the elephant – he is made of chestnut coloured wood and is the most delicious rounded shape, with a very cheerful face – having survived two generations of Burnham’s play!

As a teenager, I remarked one time to my mother about how nice it would be to have a real fire again and was firmly brought back to reality by being reminded of how much work they involve.  Filling the coal bucket, sweeping out the hearth each morning, laying the fire, getting it to light and all that bending and being on your knees, 

in addition to having three children under four (by the time we moved to Blackpool) and all the other work that that involved.  ‘That’s why there is that phrase ‘A woman’s work is never done!’ ‘my mother would say.

When I became a parent myself and sometimes struggled with the care of my one child, I would think about how much easier I had things compared to my mother.  If I had been doing #3goodthings in those early years I would have frequently  tweeted 1) central heating 2) automatic washing machine 3) disposable nappies   ( ‘warm baby to snuggle, baby giggles and at sleep at last!’ would also have been popular choices).

About the time that this Advent Blog series was launched, we reached that point in the calender, 9 November, at which in Britain women are effectively working for free compared to men due to the gender pay gap.  This currently stands at a difference of 14.2%.  At the current rate of change it is estimated that it will take another 54 years for us to reach parity of pay – even over 40 years after the Equal Pay Act was introduced!

At the same time, Maternity Action were running a campaign drawing attention to the astounding fact that the number of women in the UK losing their job as a result of pregnancy discrimination had risen in the past decade from 30,000 in 2005 to a deeply shocking 54,000 in 2015.

Much of the workplace is still effectively sex segregated, with so many jobs primarily done by women or by men. Women are desperately under-represented in science, engineering and maths- related roles and over-dominate in education, health care and social care.  We miss out on women in science and in men in education and caring roles.  And there is the vertical sex segregation too – too few women in senior decision-making roles in organisations and in politics.

Then there is the continuing taboo around the menopause and work – it would be good to start talking about this.  And whilst access to work across the board for over 5Os is hard, there also seems to be an element of extra discrimination at play for women over 50.

I know that there is lots to tackle on other fronts too – disability discrimination, greater acknowledgement and acceptance of mental health issues in the workplace, a disturbing trend of increased race discrimination in the workplace and more.  But it does particularly feel like a ‘feminist’s work is never done’ at the moment.

The need for change doesn’t go away – it may seem to disappear from public view – but like a comet returns and galvanises us to action afresh.

A New Star

Day 38 (Thursday 7th January 2016)

38 is often referred to as "Triple Prosperity" in Chinese culture.
Both the number "3" and "8" are viewed as auspicious - number 3 sounds similar
to the character for "birth" and number 8 resembles the word for "prosper" or "wealth".
Illustration - Chinese 3 coin earrings representing triple prosperity

Today's very personal and inspiring post is by Laura Codling an Organisational Development Business Partner at Torus, based in Manchester, UK. You can follow Laura on Twitter (her handle is @Laura_Torus). On graduating in HR Management and Accounting at Bolton, Laura commenced her HR career with the Police in Manchester, before transferring into a project management role in HR within Bolton Council's Adult Disability Services department. She left the public sector in 2008, moving into not-for-profit; she joined Helena Partnerships, developers and providers of affordable housing. She moved again last October to Torus (a new name within the affordable homes sector). Laura was born on Valetine's Day. She has a powerful moral compass and loves the challenges of working in an environment that stretches her and where she is helping make the world a better place. She has a passion for learning and a fascination with effecting positive change.

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This blog, whilst a little self indulgent (its about my experiences after all!), is hopefully a timely reminder to all of us about appreciation and living in the present. You may read this and not be able to relate to what I'm saying, but I'd like to think that everyone can take away something, even if it only serves to remind you that you already cherish the events and people that are in your life.

When you strive for goals it's easy to forget that the journey holds its own experiences and memories and sometimes we forget to appreciate it along the way. It sounds like common sense doesn't it?

I've heard it said many times, but it's one of those things that usually only hits home when a life event stops you in your tracks and you reflect back. The benefits of hindsight are immense.

I have always been a bit of a perfectionist wanting everything to be "just so" with boxes ticked, I's dotted and T's crossed. I have always labelled it as being "determined and driven", but you can get to the point where you are so focussed on the goal that you forget to enjoy the journey and appreciate the experience of where you have been, where you are now and where you are going.

I'll give you an example.....When I finished work for maternity leave to have my first child I was really anxious about being off work - would things be done how I do them?; would the managers I supported get the support they expected.....? I actually worried about whether they would cope without me! (No seriously I did - this wasn't about me having an inflated sense of what I contribute, but about me needing to feel that I mattered.)

I didn't spend days at home waiting for her arrival wondering what was happening at work, but that is only because she arrived the day before I was due to finish work! I went from one busy existence to another in less than 24 hours and I soon realised that a shift in focus was a good thing for me on so many levels.....and, you know what? I didn't obsess about being off, and work didn't fall apart!

We can become so immersed in our own part of the world that perspective can become skewed and small things can become international disasters. I had been so focused up to that point on my career that I couldn't see outside of it, which is pretty sad to think when I look back now.

Still Life and Street, 1937, Escher's 1st print of distorted perspective

Now, after a few massive events in my life including another period of maternity leave, I have to say my outlook is very different, but this was probably the first time I stopped and thought long and hard about what really mattered to me.

Up until that point, if you'd asked me who inspired me in life I would probably have picked some pretty obvious names - Sheryl Sandberg, Richard Branson - but, not wanting to take anything away from what they have achieved in their careers, I've come to realise that inspiration can be found closer to home and people close to you can have a far more profound impact than someone that you may never meet.

Circle of Calm painting by Katie Berggren

My inspiration now comes from a small group of people far closer to home and one little girl in particular. Georgia is my niece and the bravest person I know. At 9 years old she has gone through more on this earth than any one of us will go through in our lifetimes, battling cancer for the last 4 years. She fought hard to beat the odds, always with a smile on her face, a sparkle in her eye and you would never hear her complain. She took every day as it came, faced unimaginable obstacles and appreciated everything and everyone around her.

I should also point out that I am in awe of her mum (my sister); Georgia was, and always will be, the centre of her world and she has worked tirelessly. She has bravery, care and resilience by the bucket load.

Our hearts have been broken, we said "au revoir" to our gorgeous Georgia a few days before Christmas, after her brave and courageous fight and we will be led by the bravest lady I know. I am proud to say I'm related to them both and, if I have even a fraction of the courage and resilience they have had, then I'm good.

I no longer focus ahead at the goal so much, yes the goals I have for my life are still there (very definitely adjusted from the goals of 5 or 6 years ago) but it's much more about the journey, the experiences and the people along the way.

Blazing a trail is great but missing out on seeing the events, experiences and people that have been part of creating it and appreciating the journey would be such a shame wouldn't it?