S3 Ep1: Doing an old thing in a new way
It was my birthday a few weeks ago. I made a promise to myself to restart my weeknotes. After some predictable procrastination and a bit more introspection, I’m putting some words in a Google doc. I’ve missed the opportunity to reflect on what’s been happening at work and how it’s helping me get better at what I do. My learning feels quicker and deeper when I am writing a regular weeknote.
Weeknotes had started to feel like a chore eating into weekends when I want time away from work stuff to rest and pay attention to myself. So, I’m changing it up. I’m going to try and write a small amount each day and I’m capping the time I spend on a weeknote to an hour on Saturdays. The hypothesis is that I will get the value of the reflection and reduce the nagging intrusion into my weekend. Going for the win win!
Monday
Heading into the week with three clear priorities — preparing for a procurement exercise, finishing one of our bids for the Local Digital Fund and getting two vacancies advertised for project managers. I’m not a universal fan of deadlines, but a few hard stops have sharpened my focus for the better.
Tuesday
Great to connect with colleagues from Essex Council and Bournemouth, Christ Church and Poole Council (that’s a lot of words). Every conversation about digital inclusion offers a new nugget of information and sparks our collective imagination.
Wednesday
Today has been about holding my nerve. It paid off and now something that looked dead in the water has got a fighting chance. I’m reminded (again) that we can’t succeed when we work in isolation. It’s relationships and networks that weave the fabric of transformation and change.
Thursday
Deadline day for the Local Digital Fund. We’ve submitted two proposals this year, and partnered on a further two. My improvised progress tracker made up of sticky notes on the back of a filing cabinet generated some gentle teasing and minor sabotage. By 5pm the all sticky notes were moved to “done” and we hit the submit button. A full 30 minutes to spare.
Friday
What’s I’ve been reading/watching/listening this week:
The reasons for digital exclusion are complex and intersectional. Age plays a significant role in this — 40 per cent of over 75s don’t use the internet. Digital inclusion lacks profile in public policy, accessibility is too often an afterthought rather than a prerequisite and “digital” design is only truly person-focused when tackles offline as well online journeys.
Shaun Conner shares his experience of setting up an empathy hub. I enjoyed this quick and informative read, which includes the unintended consequences of disability simulations. An empathy hub is great, but it’s not a shortcut to spending time with disabled people and learning about their lived experiences.
It’s the time of year when energy starts to run low. The August bank holiday is a distant memory, Christmas is not in touching distance and duvet hibernation calls to our inner hedgehog. Helping teams build a diverse portfolio of relationships piqued my interest in this article. I wonder how long it has been since my teams have had a meaningful conversation with someone outside of their immediate peers?
