Weeknotes 5 - when a rest is as good as a rest

Just back from The Galapagos Islands.  Oh yes, the Mayor took a holiday.  No internet, all jobs handed over to other members of the team and me alone communing with nature.  I barely saw a person for 10 days, let alone kept up to speed on the news.  Time flew.  

I packed paperback novels, took my ukulele and borrowed a great camera.  I thought I'd have time to fill as the boat moved from one island to another.  I thought I'd be twiddling my thumbs.  But time flew.

I dozed, I daydreamed and I watched iguanas walk oh so slowly across deserted sandy beaches.  And I slept.  Time flew.

According to City AM this week, the cost to the UK economy of the business world's sleep deficit could be up to $50bn a year.  This is measured in higher mortality, lower productivity and probably a whole load of bad decisions made when the mind is just frazzled.  Sleep deficit catches up with you. 

I learned so much on my holiday.  Turtles are wonderful creatures, sea lions swim alongside you fearlessly in the Galapagos, and I don't seem to suffer with seasickness (unlike some of the people on the catamaran I was on).  But I also re-taught myself how to sleep.  It was wonderful.  

So, that's the lesson of this week's notes.  A change isn't as good as a rest - although changing your location to the middle of nowhere helps separate you from all that's filling your head.  A good brisk walk won't wake you up if you would do better closing your eyes.  After years enjoying the fast pace, it's obvious that I really needed a good kip. 

Weeknotes 4 - When you see everything differently

Yes, I missed a week.  A trip to Madrid threw my schedule into a bit of a state and my last week’s notes were sacrificed.  However, I’m back and this time I mean business.  In fact, it’s the very business of PR and media relations that’s been filling my mind with questions.

This week, I travelled down to Sussex to meet a client for dinner.  He’s someone I’ve worked with for years and he’s shared many words of wisdom that have influenced how I’ve run my own business as well as a heap of insight that can be shared with the media.   We had a great chat, as expected, however as the bill came and the last coffees were quaffed he questioned me about the significance of media relations.  With fake news, alarmist reporting, clickbait and the ocean of comment out there, was any of this getting through to the right people?  And wasn’t it only going to get worse as people stuck within the small circle of opinion that they found comfortable and avoided press because it just ‘didn’t help them understand the full story’.  I argued the case for my industry.  I used the usual lines about credibility, building a comfort factor amongst people who don’t know you, shareable content.  Maybe it was the caffeine, consumed too late after a very long day, but I wasn’t completely happy with my answers and thought about them as I surfed the net in the hotel room later that night. 

This discussion with a strategic heavy-weight, someone who I admire and have always listened to and believed, showed that I need to dust off my arguments but, more importantly, it showed I needed to take a closer look at how the PR industry and Wordville in particular is responding to the media weariness that is very real amongst so many professional people. 

Radio 4’s Media Show had a discussion about Jeremy Corbin’s reaction to news stories about him this week and about how the younger generations were not engaging with the media.  Trevor Kavanagh, political columnist of The Sun, assured us that the press ‘still has a place, the ability to delve into things in depths which social media doesn’t’.  It wasn’t very convincing.  If the national press that he works in is still relevant across generations, then surely people shouldn’t need reminding of that. The power of perception has shifted and his argument did sound a bit old-school.

At Wordville, we’ve often taken an original approach and work frequently outside the usual media channels to get clients noticed.  It feels like it’s more important than ever to question all the outreach.  I don’t have any answers yet, and I’m certainly not throwing out the baby with the bathwater.  A good night’s sleep and a hotel fry up was what I needed to recognise that this offers an opportunity for Wordville not a death knell.  The game’s a foot. And the game’s changed. 

Weeknotes 3 - The Epitome of Now

Matt says this is the time that most people give up.  You know, after a few Weeknotes you wonder what more you can say.  Well, for me, loads.  My issue will always be squeezing it all in. 

Managing time has been my theme for the week.  I spent quite a while on a new business proposal for a client I really want to work with.  It’s a risk and always in the back of my head are what an old boss of mine said ‘it’s expensive to come in second’.  I don’t want to add up all the hours I’ve spent on new business that I didn’t win.  I’ve gotten better over the years at assessing if Wordville stands a chance and so only investing the time and effort when it’s worthwhile.  Meeting the people helps.  You can see pretty quickly if they are the kind of people you want to work with (they’re having exactly the same thoughts I know).  Now, if I quit a new business pitch, it’s usually after the first meeting.  A kind of speed dating for business growth.

This week, one of our clients has written about how a CEO can combat stress and it seems that a lot has to do with time management and prioritising successfully.  I went to a Time Management course a decade or so ago and I remember two things from that training.  Firstly, that eight of the ten people attending the course were late (funny that) and, secondly, that you can’t control time only the activities you fill it with. 

I’m addicted to the Pomodoro Technique, as everyone in the office who has to suffer my ticking kitchen timer knows.  I can pack a whole lot in when I’m swapping activities every 25 minutes, rather than every other minute.  And I really like the ticking now – it’s like a happy little sidekick that is working as hard as I am.

I can’t promise to always be on top of things.  In fact, I only listened to the WB40podcast five days after it came out.  The podcast is hosted by Matt Ballantine (my unintentional transparency coach) and Chris Weston.  This week, Chris started the 55^th episode with a discussion about how time had flown since starting their podcasting.  “We are right in the moment … in the epitome of what I’d call now.”  I love that line.

So, with Pomodoro kitchen timer ticking, proposal being proofread, reports to write and a quick trip to the vets scheduled because the dog has hurt his nose, here am I, writing Week Notes - in the epitome of now.

Weeknotes 2 - 2nd February 2018

Keeping my promise to be open and also to take time each week to consider what I've learned, what worked well and what I could have gone better, here is Week Two of my #weeknotes.

I spent a good part of the week interviewing people for a magazine article.  Each of them had struggled to find work because of a disability.  They'd received support and had made progress towards getting a job.  Many of them talked to me about how cut off they felt without work.  It wasn't about the money.  They wanted to work to put their skills to good use and to connect with others.  They wanted to work to combat loneliness.

In the UK, we now have a Minister of Loneliness and this week the The Washington Post (amongst others) has written about how Europeans are struggling with feeling isolated.  Could social media help?  I admit to being hooked on Facebook and often post jokes or photos when I just need an audience to share something with (and require a little more response than the teenage eye rolls I get from my sons).  But social media also paints an unrealistic picture and, if you compare yourself as you're scrolling through the fabulous lives of others, it can make anyone feel separate, less interesting and alone.

I also had a chat to a friend who is running a marathon in the Sahara desert (that's one that'd go down a treat on social media).  He's doing it to raise money for a London charity, The Camden Society, that supports people with disabilities, many of whom are housebound .  As well as providing care, they also provide company.  It struck a chord with me.

What did I learn this week?  That I don't know very much about loneliness but I know it affects all ages, races, socio economic groups.  I hope the Minister of Loneliness does a great job - and that my friend Matt makes a fortune with his fundraising.  What I don't do well?  Sharing my own time and keeping an eye out for others who might be lonely.  I'm going to work on that.

Welcome to Weeknotes 1 - 26th January 2018

An intriguing lunch with Matt Ballantine this week caused me to rethink how transparent I am in my working life.  Although cautious, I agreed to adopt some of the tools he uses.  I signed up to a lively and informative WhatsApp group (note to a beginner, mute the notifications - some people start chatting very early in the morning and if you sleep with your phone in bed with you you'll be woken at the crack of dawn).  And I promised to share Weeknotes - a sort of stream of consciousness about the week just experienced.  Here's mine:

It's been awards week.  Oscars announced.  Wordville won an award:

Most Outstanding PR & Marketing Company 2018

Why, thanks for that. 

And I had some heated debates about whether Management Today's proposed award for men who have supported woman to break through the glass ceiling was a bit 'iffy' and felt like handing out a prize for doing the right thing - or really an award for not doing the wrong thing.   

I also drafted an award for a client, which was inspiring.  Growth is great - or so they say - but it was impressive to catalogue all the achievements the company has made on behalf of the staff, clients and community.  

So, as someone who has always been a little cynical about awards, here am I in 'awardsville'.  I'm still conflicted about awards but admit I'm considering ordering the faux crystal trophy that comes with Wordville's latest.  Well, once you've got one you sort of need to keep it up. 

LG