Life in The Office

Ricky Gervais as David Brent - The Office (UK)

I have been so busy and this is a trend that is likely to continue for the next 3-4 weeks. Oh, work has been busy and the chores at home never seem to end but that is not it. I recently passed the first stage of a lengthy and competitive promotion process. Stage one down, two more to go! The next stage is in 3-4 weeks or so (depending on the slot I am given) and takes the form of two written exercises based on work type scenarios. The final stage is in September and is an assessment centre with written exercises and role play situations.

The whole process is very competitive with around 800 candidates all after around 170 promotion 'tickets'. These are a bit like Willy Wonka's golden tickets as they permit those that have them to apply for posts at the next level. So I suppose there is a further stage after the whole assessment process as you have to apply for posts and pass interview to get a post!

I am being very realistic about the whole thing. Very few people pass first time but on the whole I feel I am in a win-win situation. If I an unsuccessful at either of the next two stages then I am given feedback to help me address areas I am less strong in and I can always try again next time round. There are very few opportunities for such detailed feedback so I feel I even win if I lose in a way. It's not often that happens!

Anyway, for now I am chuffed that I passed the first stage as quite a few people didn't. I had a small celebration at home with a bottle of Champagne (it is so important to celebrate the successes along the way). Wish me luck for stage two and please understand if my blogging is erratic. It's all a bit like preparing for exams!

Packing Boxes and Bags

I do not know where October has gone to. It seems to me that it has been cut by around three weeks or so. Mind you I have been busy so it is not surprising that time has flown by. So, what have I been up to? There is so much to tell.

Work has been hectic, and I mean more so than usual due to various factors beyond my control. Also, at the start of the month I had a really bad chest infection which left me unable to breathe properly. I was put on a course of steroids strong enough to be the envy of an athlete with questionable morals and told if things didn't improve in a couple of days then I would be admitted to hospital. Luckily I did improve but am still not 100%. Nasty bug. So, I had to have some time away from work which further compressed deadlines. I have been very tired. On top of that I found out recently that my post has been cut so I need to find something else.

I have also been raising funds for Operation Christmas Child. I chuffed to bits that I managed to fill and wrap 50 shoe boxes for under privileged children this year. It's so simple to do and has such an immediate effect as I know that the box I put together will be received, as it was sent, by a child that would otherwise receive nothing. I love that such little things like soap, toothbrushes, stationary, small toys, hats, gloves etc. are appreciated. It seems to me that we can take a lot for granted sometimes. In Romania, the children from gypsy families cannot even go to school unless they supply their own stationary so just a few pencils and notebooks can provide access to education. Who would have thought it would be so simple to really make a difference to someones life?

I also had my first professional commission as a photographer. A friend of mine has written a book about survival during a zombie apocalypse and I have been assisting with taking photographs and editing. Taking the photos was quite intense but a lot of fun, especially when we had people made up as zombies. I loved that even though there was a list of shots that were required I could also still exercise some of my creative skills and came up with a few good ideas of my own. It was good experience having to direct the people modeling, especially as none of them were professional models. It was pretty time consuming but worth it as the book has been published and is available online.

So, after all that I think I deserve a holiday and so that is exactly what I am doing. Soon I will be jetting off to San Francisco, somewhere that has been on my list for some time. Literally everyone I have spoken to that has been there has said that they loved it. I am so looking forward to seeing it for myself. Of course this means that I will be absent from blogging for around just over a week but I am going to make a concerted effort to visit all my blog friends before I go. Watch out San Francisco, I'm packing my bags.

Of cats, shoe boxes and newspapers.

Can we have new beds please? These are not up to kitty standards!

Firstly thanks to everyone who left kind comments and encouraging words on my last post. I really appreciated them. I've been shooing my black dog away, though things remain trying. I decided to use some of my work skills and apply them to my personal life and so I made a list of everything that was bothering me, what the issue was and then looked at what I could actually change and what I might just have to accept and how I could go about this - a little like a very organised version of the serenity prayer. It helped organise my thoughts and so now I am working on resolving the things on the list. Curiously, the things that I can change are not necessarily the hardest ones to tackle. It's one thing knowing you have to accept something and quite another one actually learning to live with that.

I can see myself in that funny thing you're holding to your face!

Meanwhile life goes on and my kitties are growing up at such a rate! They are now the size of the average adult cat and are just coming up to 6 months old. They are still the pure embodiment of mischief and are into everything. Their personalities get more developed with each passing week and they have started to get very definite habits. It's wonderful watching these two cats develop from little balls of fur into what I hope will be lovely companions.

Watch the birdie? What birdie?

I have been putting together shoe boxes of gifts for Operation Christmas Child and my boys have been "helping me", hence the photo of Max in the shoe box. So far I have put together sixteen shoe boxes and I'm raising funds to do more through work. To do this I run a tuck shop and a trading post for CDs and DVDs where people bring in their old ones and can exchange them for something else for £1.

Very sleepy...

On a different note, I saw a familiar face in one of our national newspapers last week. It wasn't a shock really as I did consent to the interview. The interview was about my MBA and my experience of studying and how it has benefited me in my career and was used as a case study to support and article on MBAs. It's a silly piece of vanity I know, but I was quite pleased with the article and how it looked. I even sounded good to me and it was a good boost to my morale.

I also had the results of my MBTI assessment and my 360 degree feedback at work. This gave me such a boost on one hand and a little bit of a shock on the other. It was great as many ex line managers of mine completed it and had some really nice things to say about me and scored me quite high on many qualities. The shock came as my current line manager scored me very low on most attributes and his assessment was way out of line with colleagues and everyone else.

Best buddies

I discussed this at length with the consultant giving the feedback analysis as he voiced his concerns about the disparity between the scores. From discussion we felt that the culture and the team I am in are holding me back, even suppressing me and not letting me shine. My boss is also new to management (we are his first staff) and it was felt this was a major factor as within the team culture he probably felt he couldn't give high scores. It's a great concern as a report on the same lines will hold me back from promotion so I need to address this with him and explore why his scoring was so much lower than everyone else. The up side - I know it isn't me and that work and the negative energy there is affecting me. I am seriously looking for another job with another team in the organisation. Sometimes, information comes just at the right time, and this time it's helping me address something negative through giving me a positive boost. And just knowing this has made me feel so much better already.

Because you asked so nicely...

The Boys

Many people who stop by here have asked about Sam and Max and requested photos, so at the risk of boring all my non cat loving blog friends, here are a couple of recent pics. My boys are growing up, and fast!

Sam

Sam and Max came to live with me at the start of July and are now definitely part of the family. As time has gone on I have come two know two very different little characters. Sam is an intense and needy little fellow. If I turn around it's most likely to be Sam getting under my feet (though he does not have exclusive rights to this). He also has a temper on him and complains about things that won't co-operate with him and smacks things with his paw (like closing doors). He is also the one that catches onto things more quickly and sits on his hind quarters with his fore paws in the air when he wants something.

Max

Max is the slightly larger of the two and is very laid back. Very little fazes him and he is by far the more independent of the two. Max knows his own mind and is into everything. This can also lead him into naughtiness (but he doesn't hold the monopoly here) but he has a very loud and ready purr and a sweet nature.

Both of them are lovable rogues and are very playful. Their days are carefree and consist of playing, napping and chasing each other around the house at 100mph. They are indoor cast as their nature is too trusting and open and paired with curiosity means that Ragdoll cats often go missing or worse when left to their own devices in the outside world. However, I have bought them harness and lead sets and they love going out around the garden on a sunny day and sit very patiently while I put their harness on. They have also learnt to answer to their names (most of the time), and know words such as 'food', 'no', 'down', 'out' and 'up' though sometimes suffer from selective deafness! They are my pride and joy and drive me mad. Right now they are both sat on the sofa with me.

As for the rest of my life, well, I am acutely aware that I still haven't been visiting my blog friends much. I am busy but that is not the whole story. Work continues to be very stressful and I simply have very little energy for anything. The team culture is very reactive and rather than being lead, I feel like I am being yanked on a leash, not knowing which way to go next until I am jerked in that direction. On top of that, there is also much micro-management from above in the food chain and there is a disconnect between being able to manage your own work and responsibility for it. I do not thrive under such conditions I'm afraid and I am very tense as a result and am suffering from back and neck pain. I am hoping things will settle down in the long term but basically I am keeping my eyes open for another opportunity elsewhere in the organisation. Fingers crossed.

Wind of change

I haven't posted for a little while and to tell you the truth I haven't got a clue what to write now. I am alive and well... 'well' meaning things are pretty much the same. Except that I have been feeling pretty much demotivated by work and the feeling is so acute that it is spilling over into the rest of my life despite my best efforts to contain it and leave 'work' at work.

Change is an inevitable part of work these days and the team I am in are being subjected to a lot of change. I use the work 'subjected' advisedly. I am not one to balk at change. It has always been highlighted as one of my strengths in work appraisals and I have long since realised that change can be for the better and that if not, nothing lasts forever and things can always be changed back, or they will change yet again. I have long since learnt to sway with the wind of change like the reed in Aesop's fable, rather than break like the unbending tree. So why is this change causing so much stress?

While I was studying for my MBA I learnt that change is not just inevitable, but necessary in the business world. Organisations need to be able to adapt to the changing context they operate in. They need to meet evolving customer needs and they need to roll with the punches like the current recession in order to survive. I also learnt that there are methodologies that make such changes easy for everyone involved and that the flip side of that coin is that there are less than satisfactory ways to manage change.

Change is like a journey and if you are leading or managing a change initiative you need to take those affected on the journey with you. You need to be able to communicate what the change is about, why it is necessary and where you are heading.

You must involve those affected, consult with them and ensure that stakeholders are kept up to date and their views considered.

You must be cognisant of cultural factors, particularly when two teams are being amalgamated - all too often the meaning of words can be different as well as the accepted way that things are done.

You must plan how the change is going to happen and delegate areas so that people feel involved. You must get a senior manager to Champion the change and actually lead it in more than name.

You must review progress to ensure you are on track and address any concerns - remember resistors to change are not the enemy, sometimes they are resisting for a very good reason and it could be something you have overlooked!

Last but not least people should know what is happening and when and disruption to normal work should be minimised.

All this is is a 'should do' list, not a 'don't do' list! Change is never easy to manage and it is a learning experience for anyone involved, no matter at what level of the organisation. I have personally helped scope and manage two large change initiatives in the recent past and together with my Masters degree I feel I know the good from the bad from the down right ugly. From where I'm sitting right now, the view is not pretty at all.

If change is managed badly it can leave those affected demotivated and resistant. At best they will shut up and productivity will decline; at worst they may leave, taking skills and knowledge with them or they may undermine the change effort. Change is about making the organisation more effective and perhaps more financially efficient. When change is done badly it can become costly so why is it so often done badly by so many organisations? Essay answers please, on the back of a stamp or delivered by carrier pigeon.

Bobbing along

So..it's been nearly a week since I last blogged but I have a good excuse, honest. Well, actually it's not that great but it's true. Work has been a tad on the busy side and quite a big tad on the stressful side. Change has become de rigour at work but this one is particularly painful as our team is being merged with another and the culture and modus operandi is so different that it's akin to mixing oil and water. Unfortunately the new boss took a JFDI approach to managing the change and now quite a few people are demotivated and disillusioned.

On top of that it is time for the end of year appraisal and I have been trying to write mine, something I always find difficult to do. I want my achievements to be recognised but then I don't want to over do it and give the impression that I can walk on water and do a neat trick with loaves and fishes.

On top of that, I went for my blood test this week and have been informed that I need to have another one in 3 months. Why? Because they are not happy with my thyroid function. Apparently my half a thyroid has not taken over as well as hoped. I told you I felt run down didn't I? This would help explain the uncharacteristic tiredness which is accompanied with bouts of uncharacteristic grouchiness due to feeling tired and having to cope with the hoohar at work.

On top of that I have used all my spare worry time on Bob. Since he came home last week I have kept a close eye on him, but the good news is that he is doing fine on the steroids. In fact, he is quite his old self apart from being very thin (though he eats fine). I took him back to the vets today and we decided to continue with the steroids and see how he goes, though I have been warned once again that this is simply buying some quality of life time. I know this, that is why I have already researched pet cremation places nearby. I don't want to have to deal with finding things when the time comes and this also helps me mentally prepare.

The truth is we don't know how long Bob has left but we will make it as good as possible for him. Bob of course is currently sulking at me for taking him to the V.E.T.S. and he let his opinion be known by throwing up on the way home. Right now, I'm just glad he's doing well, and will take his feedback in my stride. I hope I get better feedback from work next week when I discuss my appraisal. Right now though I'm just looking forward to a nice long bank holiday weekend, with a dash of sun please if that's not too much trouble?

Einstein a go go

I thought I would share something I rediscovered this week. Something that is guaranteed to reduce stress and it's so easy to do.

I was not best pleased last week when I found that major road works were starting just outside my work place. They are unavoidable and will take about 6 months to complete. I mostly work flexi hours so not too much trouble most of the time as I can miss most of the worst commuter traffic and hence my involvement in en masse queuing is minimised. Except that this week I am on a Systems Engineering course which is forcing me to join the other commuter lemmings due to it's start and finish times. Lovely. Life is far too short to spend in traffic jams. Even with your new CD playing and sending out happy vibes that make you sing along and experience quizzical looks from other drivers.

Anyway, like a good project manager I planned ahead and allowed more time for my journey. A lot more time which was just as well as it took me 3 times the amount of time for my journey. But here's the thing. I did not freak out. I did not get anxious. I did not rant at the other traffic. I just sang along to my CD making a complete arse of myself and I didn't care because I had time. Voila! Just like that I had rediscovered something I already knew. Allow enough time to do the task and then a little bit on top.

It's amazing how less stressed I felt! By allowing myself time I took the pressure off. By taking the pressure off, I was less stressed. As I was less stressed I relaxed and even enjoyed my journey into work. Because I was relaxed I didn't get all ranty when the other drivers wouldn't let me over, I didn't get ranty when someone cut me up and didn't indicate, I could afford to let other people out of junctions because I didn't feel time was against me and I gave some people a good laugh watching me sing. Simple.

I think it can be easy to put undue pressure on ourselves in this fast paced high pressure environment most of us live in. There is always lots to do and never enough time to do it. The thing is though, that by taking the pressure off myself at the start of the day I arrive at work in a better frame of mind, the rest of the day just flows better and somehow I have more time. Einstein was right, time is relative after all! I know this is overly simplistic and it's not always possible to build in more time. Sometimes things work against us. But the nice thing is that I expected this week to be a nightmare seeing as I had to navigate the roadworks at the worse possible time, and I have been pleasantly surprised. Now, how often does that happen?

Sitrep

So, it's the weekend again... which is odd as the last one has only just finished. Or at least it feels that way as this week has been so busy and has flown past. I have been so tired in the evening that I haven't been online much and didn't even manage to muster up enough energy to make pancakes on Shrove Tuesday. Anyway, it's Friday at last and so far I appear to have been glued to the sofa. It's just so comfy and I'm sooooo tired. I can just about muster up enough energy to give anyone that may be reading this and is interested a small window into my week:

• Dessie, my bearded dragon is hardly eating so I took her to the vet. It appears the cold snap we had has meant that she is partially brummating (kind of like hibernating without the deep long sleep). I have to give her vitamin baths and take some steps to help her think it's spring.
  
• The vet did say Dessie is a beautiful beardie, which of course she is. The markings on her back are gorgeous! I will have to take some photos.
  
• Bob the cat saw to it that I did not get a good nights sleep on Wednesday and that I was woken up on Thursday in the wee hours. I love him very much but was quite willing to throttle him. he has taken to yelling at the top of his lungs from time to time. Not so bad in the day, but around 3am it is not so welcome. Or at 4am.
• Work has been very busy. I launched a new initiative at work which is a 'surgery' where project teams can come and get advice on certain issues. I got great feedback from those that attended.
• I also ended up compiling a report at short notice, but made the deadline.
• Today, I ended up helping the boss map out our tasks and outputs against our customers as part of the input to our team restructuring. Yet another last minute request. It's a time of great change.
• Yesterday I was so tired I had take away Chinese food as I couldn't face cooking.
• I also fell asleep on the sofa and woke up an hour later with Dessie asleep on my neck and Bob asleep on my hip.
• I seem to be tired a lot these days and wonder if it has something to do with my recent thyroid lobectomy.
• I am off tomorrow to a 'Living History' fair. It's a market where you can buy traditional leather, glass and wood craft items as well as traditional clothing and assorted traditional weapons for history re-enactors. There is usually a wonderful jewellery stand there too.
• I am also going to buy a new fish this weekend as my poor male Apistogramma Cacatuoides suddenly took ill and died recently. I tried treating the tank but without any obvious outward signs of illness it was hard to know what to do. The other fish are fine happily.
  
• I lost a Follower from my blog. I know who it was and I think I know what it relates to but I cannot for the life of me think why. I always respect other people's view even if I have a different one and treat my blog friends with the respect they deserve so I am at a complete loss over this. Perhaps I just wasn't interesting enough?
  
• I badly need a break so I am hopefully going to be booking a short break away this weekend for March. More on that once it's booked.
  

That's about it for this week. I am trying to get round to people's blogs to say hi. Bear with me. I am feeling quite exhausted. In the meantime why not pop by Netchicks' Blog and take part in the Meet & Greet? It's a great way of meeting new bloggers :)

I'll do it tomorrow...

This is what I tell myself everyday. I'll get round to it tomorrow; I'll have time tomorrow, I'll definitely do it tomorrow. Of course, for me at least, tomorrow always seems to be, well... tomorrow.

So another week has passed where I haven't been able to get round to blogging. Sure, I've managed to visit some blogs over a sandwich at lunchtime and have promised myself that I would return later and comment and then just haven't had time to visit again. I am finding it all quite frustrating and I am missing the virtual interaction I have with my blog friends.

The reason? Work of course! As you know I started a new job in July and it has been a pretty steep learning curve. Add to that the fact that two of the projects I am looking after (I provide technical advice and assurance to projects) have turned out to be far more difficult, with extremely challenging deadlines and difficult personalities involved then this has turned my steep learning curve into a vertical take-off! I have been coming home feeling very drained, very tired and a wee bit snappish on occasion. Twice I have been given projects whose emergency has become my crisis and twice I have had to rearranged my workload last week. I am old enough and experienced enough to know that last minute changes are the norm in life but I do feel that I have had more than my fair share given my newbie status in this job. Gripe over.

Anyway, the long and short of it has been that I have had less time and energy to blog and do other stuff as well. This week is going to be another corker but I am hoping that things will settle down after this and my vertical take-off will cease before I reach orbit. Thanks for popping by and I will be by to visit as soon as I can.

Out of the zone

How did I get here? I appear to be out of my comfort zone and dipping my toes in the sea of uncertainty. It's scary and exciting at the same time. You see, this week is the first week in my new job.

I know the physical sequence of events that led me here of course. I applied for the job, I attended the interview and I accepted the job, ergo I am now here. But part of me wonders why I am here. Again. What makes me keep jumping out of the nice comfortable metaphorical sofa into the deep blue unknown?

Starting a new job is never easy. There is a new culture to integrate into which involves getting a feel for all those tacit value systems, there are a whole new set of acronyms and 'in speak' to make sense of, systems and processes to learn and personalities to fathom. Then there is the actual work, a whole new set of skills and knowledge to learn. And therein lies the crux of the matter. I like to learn. If I stay in one place too long then I stagnate. The comfortable sofa starts to become suffocating and I long to get up off it and start the next adventure.

I have no idea what this job has in store for me but I do know it will challenge and stretch me. I know it will sometimes be trying, but I also know that the present confusion and fear I am feeling will pass as I become more familiar with what is expected of me and as I find my niche in my new team. I'm feeling the fear and doing it anyway and it feels good.

Red Letter Day

(Photo from the internet)

Today was a normal working day on the whole. I got up, went through the motions of going to work. Got to work, logged in to my computer, read my emails, answered my emails, worked on a spreadsheet and a couple of documents, took phone calls, had lunch. But a Red Letter day is a special day, so called because they were originally the holy days and saints' days indicated in early ecclesiastical calendars by letters marked in red ink and this is pretty run of the mill stuff on the whole. With a difference. Because today I formally accepted a new post on promotion.

Yes, in case you haven't joined the dots, I've been promoted and that will mean a change of job for me, but within the same organisation. I went for the interview last Friday and received the formal offer and accepted it today. My new role is in Technical Assurance and will be a whole new challenge and will definitely take me out of my comfort zone for a while. But I'm looking forward to it. So, some of the ordinary run of the mill stuff has been around negotiating my start date with the new team and getting the ducks in a row for whoever my successor will be. So today is a Red Letter day because this is a big deal, and as many people who know me have said when I have told them "About time too". Shucks.

My Wordless Wednesday post is up on my photoblog. Click *here* for instant transportation to something sweet.

Let's Pretend

"I keep thinking I'm a grown up, but I'm not"
~ Victoria Tennant as Sara McDowell in LA Story

Do you ever feel like a big kid in an adult world and wonder how long it will be before you are 'found out'? I find myself feeling this way at work sometimes. I feel like I am playing 'let's pretend I'm a business woman', like a kid in her mothers wardrobe the shoes I am wearing are much too big so I am in fact clumping around. I have been dealing with some pretty important big things at work that my boss (who is 2 grades higher than me) would normally deal with but as he is off ill it has come down to me. So far my secret is safe though. I might even be doing good work.

It is strange though. Sometimes I find it hard to believe that I have my own house which I run myself. I earn money, I manage my own budget and pay bills, vote and feed and clothe myself. Inside though there is a big kid who has a big sense of mischief and who enjoys to play. I think the child inside me is a little frustrated at the moment though. All work and too little play. I have been super busy (no change there) so I haven't been around much. Here is a quick run down:

• I am tired! The pre-Easter rush to get things completed has had me working long hours.
• My boss is still off sick so there is so much to do.
• Work politics are still rife. 'Alpha Male' is still trying to take advantage of my boss being off ill to undermine my work so he can grab the resources.
• I did score a small victory against him recently though. I am not the push over he thought I was but it is still stressful dealing with this rubbish.
  
• My home is a mess as I have had precious little time to tidy and clean.
• I am normally a fastidious person so having a messy home has added to the stress.
  
• I have been suffering from migraines lately. I have had at three in the last couple of weeks.
• The upside is that I now get 5 days off in a row. Bliss!
• I am not even going to think about work.
• Good news - I passed my MBA project! How on earth did I manage that?
  
• Yay for me. Now I have one open book examinable essay left to do.
• The light is at the end of the tunnel and it is NOT a train!

I am now looking forward to a few days off. I will have to do some work on my Masters essay and I will be cleaning the house but I also intend to indulge in something I have precious little time for these days. Myself.

Pics of the big cats from my visit to the Wildlife Park coming soon.

Still far to go...

This morning I made my cup of tea and switched the TV on while I had breakfast. The grey pool of the screen came to life with colours and I was poised to turn over to the news channel when something stilled my finger mid press. It was not a program I would normally watch but I was riveted all the same. As I watched, my early Sunday morning fugue became infused with disbelief and then anger. What caused this heightened emotional state? Well, a program following the everyday goings on at an airport of course.

Now I usually avoid these programs like the plague as I usually end up getting annoyed by them. I get annoyed sometimes by the jobs-worth people following process rather than applying customer service but mostly I get annoyed at idiot passengers who are trying to take too much luggage on and then get shirty, or forget their passports or something and get shirty as the airline won't hold the flight, just for them. (My views on customer service and bad customers are a whole other topic!).

No, this time I was angry as there was a qualified pilot on the show and she was executing some training flights. Note please the use of the words "she" and "her". Now let me share with you two pieces of the program:

First the Captain who was to supervise her gave his opinion saying that there weren't many women commercial pilots but the ones he had come across "had to be at least as good as the men and in fact were often better". The Captain seems to be a fair minded chap eager for his protégé to do well, but let's examine that sentence: the women have to be at least as good as the men. The phrase is intrinsically sexist and I don't mean that the Captain is a sexist man, rather it is the reality of the situation. A commercial pilot is traditionally a 'male' job so the rhetoric applied is from this perspective. It still annoys me that women are singled out as special or different but this will be the case until the status quo is addressed.

Meanwhile, let's not detract from her achievement. I know what it is like to work in a male dominated profession. I worked as a theatrical technician for years and was the only woman backstage until the dressers joined for the shows. I did have to be better than the men around me, I did have to work harder and I was still not treated as an equal. I was not given the same training opportunities as the men unless I pushed hard for it and I was not given the choice jobs that attracted premium pay (theatre work is often casual or short term contract). Lets be clear, it was definitely not because the men were better than me. I know because time and again I was singled out as being good and given difficult cues by visiting crew and when I left this particular theatre the theatre production manager came and presented me with a bottle of champagne which was unheard of.

Back to the TV program. Having singled a woman pilot out as a novelty, the interviewer then proceeded to tell some of the passengers about her. Predictably, the majority of the men voiced concerns about 'women drivers' (because we all know what perfect drivers ALL men are and how well qualified they are to make their critique). In particular two men, said that had they known, they would not have got onto the plane. Now thankfully, these particular individuals are not ever going to be CEOs of FTSE 100 companies, but this attitude is prevalent and women have to put up with it every day in greater or lesser ways.

My last post was humorous. It is hard to think that within living memory, women were thought of as being not good enough to handle a job when they were clearly juggling running a home and raising a family as well as looking after a husband. The point of view that women are inferior in any way is a bigoted and narrow minded point of view. Let's be completely clear about this. I am not a feminist, I am not some sort of lesbian either for having these views (I have been accused of this!!!), I simply want an equal opportunity in life and want people to see beyond the bumps in my T-shirt to what I am able to do and what I can achieve.

Someone commented on my last post that part of the problem is a lack of female interest in traditional male professions. My answer is simply this: when you are a woman, society and school unconsciously push you towards traditionally female roles. If you think I am wrong just look at the toys that are made for girls and for boys. Notice the difference? If you dare to push the boundaries you are in for a difficult time. For a start you have to be at least as good as the men. I disagree, in my experience you have to be better than your male counterparts to be seen as being at least as good. We have come a long way as society since the article in my last post was published, but we still have far to go.

(Please note that I do not just believe men are responsible for this trend. Women are equally responsible, at least in that respect we are equal. Also, as ever these are my views which are of course coloured by my own experiences).

It could be worse...

It's been a helluva week. I have been trying to get things to a point where I can leave work for a week in order to concentrate on my MBA final project. Doing my own job and that of my boss has meant this has been some task. It's been somewhat hectic. The hours have been somewhat long. It has been somewhat stressful and now I am somewhat tired. Still, it could be worse. It could be 1943.

I got the following sent to me at work. A male colleague thought it was hilarious, as did I. How silly that men were so blind and stupid for so long that they ignored the value of half the world's population! Equality has come a long way. It still has far to go but let's not get into that right now.

The following is an excerpt from the July 1943 issue of Transportation Magazine. This was very serious at the time of publication and written for male supervisors of women in the work force during World War II, a mere 64 years ago!

There is no longer any question whether transit companies should hire women for jobs formerly held by men. The draft and manpower shortage has settled that point. The important things now are to select the most efficient women available and how to use them to the best advantage.

Here are eleven helpful tips on the subject:

1. Pick young married women. They usually have more of a sense of responsibility than their unmarried sisters. They are less likely to be flirtatious. They need the work, or they would not be doing it. They still have the pep and interest to work hard and to deal with the public efficiently.

2. When you have to use older women, try to get ones who have worked outside the home at some time in their lives. Older women who have never contacted the public have a hard time adapting themselves and are inclined to be cantankerous and fussy. It is always well to impress upon older women, the importance of friendliness and courtesy.

3. General experience indicates that "husky" girls - those who are just a little on the heavy side - are more even-tempered and efficient than their underweight sisters.

4. Retain a physician to give each woman you hire a special physical examination - one covering female conditions. This step not only protects the property against the possibilities of lawsuit, but also reveals whether the employee-to-be has any female weaknesses that would make her mentally or physically unfit for the job.

5. Stress, at the outset, the importance of time; the fact that a minute or two lost here and there makes serious inroads on schedules. Until this point is gotten across, service is likely to be slowed up.

6. Give the female employee a definite daylong schedule of duties so that they will keep busy without bothering the management for instructions every few minutes. Numerous properties say that women make excellent workers when they have their jobs cut out for them, but that they lack initiative in finding work themselves.

7. Whenever possible, let the inside employee change from one job to another at some time during the day. Women are inclined to be less nervous and happier with change.

8. Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make some allowances for feminine psychology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day.

9. Be tactful when issuing instructions or in making criticisms. Women are often sensitive; they cannot shrug off harsh words the way men do. Never ridicule a woman - it breaks her spirit and cuts off her efficiency.

10. Be reasonably considerate about using strong language around women. Even though a girl's husband or father may swear vociferously, she will grow to dislike a place of business where she hears too much of this.

11. Get enough size variety in operator's uniforms so that each girl can have a proper fit. This point cannot be stressed too much in keeping women happy.

IT Haiku

I have little of interest to tell you. I could wax lyrical about work, about the meetings, about misguided senior managers who will. not. listen., about the permanent cat herding of trying to manage diverse stakeholders of differing views and levels of interest; about being piggy-in-the-middle when said stakeholders do not like something that aforementioned senior managers have decided.

Yes I know this is all part of management but I have left out the politics that are going on here. With my boss out of action there are several far more senior people here trying to drive their own agenda with me caught up in the middle trying to get the work done, and that of my boss. Motivation levels are low. See, I told you it wasn't interesting! Also of little interest is the fact thatI have three weeks to complete my MBA project, on which I have made scant progress due to work and the lack of support for it there. I have been forced to take a week off and to attempt to do the whole thing in that week. Running these things in parallel just isn't working and I am getting tired and cranky.

So, I love it when a friend sends me some light relief in the form of a 'funny' email. I got this one last week and it made me smile. I hope you enjoy it too!

In Japan, they have replaced the impersonal and unhelpful Microsoft error messages with Haiku poetry messages. Haiku Poetry has strict construction rules: each poem has only 17 syllables - 5 syllables in the first line, 7 in the second, 5 in the third. They are used to communicate a timeless message, often achieving a wistful, yearning, and powerful insight through extreme brevity. Below are little poetic gems to muse the next time you crash.

The web site you seek
Cannot be located, but
Countless more exist.

Chaos reigns within.
Reflect, repent, and reboot.
Order shall return.

Program aborting
Close all that you have worked on.
You ask far too much.

Windows has crashed.
I am the Blue Screen of Death.
No one hears your screams.

Yesterday it worked.
Today it is not working.
Windows is like that.

Your file was so big.
It might be very useful.
But now it is gone.

Stay the patient course.
Of little worth is your ire.
The network is down.

A crash reduces
Your expensive computer
To a simple stone.

Three things are certain
Death, taxes and lost data.
Guess which has occurred.

You step in the stream,
But the water has moved on.
This page is not here.

Out of memory.
We wish to hold the whole sky,
But we never will.

Having been erased,
The document you're seeking
Must now be retyped.

Serious error.
All shortcuts have disappeared.
Screen. Mind. Both are blank.

If only I didn't actually have to be there

I haven't been around much in blog land lately so I really must apologise for my tardiness in visiting and posting. Real life has been getting in the way of blogging, and well having fun in general, though I did go to the cinema with CrazieQueen to see Sweeney Todd which I thoroughly enjoyed. All work and no play makes Bobkat a dull girl, and I am seriously losing my shine.

Life is so short that it seems odd to wish your life away but I simply cannot wait until February is over. My boss is not going to retun to work until at least March so I will have to continue doing two jobs for now - I have two projects due to deliver this month, a big presentation to give to 120 delegates next week and a working group to co-ordinate and run on top of all the day to day stuff. It wouldn't be so bad if the big bosses still didn't expect everything to be delivered despite our team being down by 50% (my colleague is still working part time). Yes, I have met with them, yes, they have listened to my position, heard my options for working, nodded sagely and then proceeeded to pile on the pressure...[sigh]. There is very little in terms of extra resources and so I feel I am definitely one of 'The Willing' mentioned in the quote.

I also have my MBA final project to do by the end of the month and I am starting to panic. You see, it is meant to be work based but work have not been very supportive and so I am having to wing it. To tell you the truth I am feeling just an ickle tiny weeny bit stressed. I know this is all a challenge and if it doesn't kill me it will make me stronger etc., but, do I really have to be there?

Which is why receiving another 'Roar for Powerful Words' award was so nice to get. Susan over at 'West of Mars' passed it on to me and coming from such a talented writer as her, and a fellow rock chick it was a huge, and well needed compliment. Thanks! Follow the links (in bold) to visit Susan or the origin of the award at 'The Shameless Lions Writing Circle'. I have already passed this award on to other bloggers *here*.

During February please bear with me while I weather the storm. I suspect my visits and posts will be sporadic but I will pop by when I can.

Give me a sign!

I see Bob delivered my message in the post below. Anyway, you will all, no doubt be greatly relieved to hear that Bob has been fed as the last thing I would do is neglect the silly old fluffy cantankerous bugger. I do seem to neglect myself a lot lately though. My life remains hectic and I will not be around much next week at all as I am off to Brussels for 3 days on business. My time there is very much accounted for so it will be all meetings and no sightseeing. Still, I hope to get out and at least buy some yummy Belgian Choccies while I'm there. I have taken the Eurostar before but this will be the first time I have travelled from St Pancras station on the high speed track. Apparently I will be zooming under the Channel at 186mph and will be in Brussels in less than 2 hours! I expect the landscape (once out of the tunnel of course) will be a bit blurry.

Anyway, I thought I would leave you with a 'fun' thing. I was talking with a colleague at work and the subject of Chinese zodiac signs came up. She was surprised that I didn't know what mine was so I looked it up. Apparently I am a 'Rooster'. Cock-a -doodle-blimmin'-doo. The thing is, much of the following is on the nail:

The ROOSTER Meticulous, Efficient, Orderly, Conscientious, Intelligent, Honourable, Notoriously Candid (yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep and yep!).

The quick thinking, ingenious Roosters are a pragmatic lot who prefer not to take any risks. Roosters are so aware of what’s going on around them that some may believe them to be psychic. It is not easy to sneak anything by a Rooster. These beings are a frank, honest lot who do not pull any punches and admire those who are truthful with them.

Roosters do not play games and are not likely to create facades to hide behind. They are honest, open and keep their word. Roosters are perfectionists and like to be in control. Their appearance is of great importance to them. Roosters do love to be noticed and love socializing with those who love them. Roosters expect and will fight for control of their surroundings and those who fall within its boundaries. They are extremely neat and expect their family members to be the same. By nature, Roosters are conservative, and loyal, trusting and supportive to those who earn it. Those close to the Rooster who do not live up to their standards will find themselves henpecked incessantly. Roosters who learn to let others be what they are will have an extremely gratifying life.

Famous ROOSTERS Include
Dirk Bogarde, Barbara Taylor Bradford, Michael Caine, Eric Clapton, Joan Collins, Errol Flynn, Melanie Griffith, Richard Harris, Goldie Hawn, Katherine Hepburn, Diane Keaton, Jayne Mansfield, Steve Martin, James Mason, Somerset Maugham, Bette Midler, Van Morrison, Willie Nelson, Kim Novak, Yoko Ono, Dolly Parton, Michelle Pfeiffer, George Segal, Peter Ustinov.

I'm still working on that gratifying life thing, but I'm getting there! So what animal are you? Find out here. See you soon.

Bob-kat goes International

I have recently changed jobs. I am still working for the same organisation but moved into another area to broaden my experience. This is all part of my grand plan to take over the world someday, or at the very least earn more money.

So... I am currently out of my comfort zone, not in the panic zone but definitely not comfortable. I have a whole new language to learn in the form of a new set of acronyms and the learning curve is pretty steep. Who would have thought that two areas of the same organisation would be so different! I'm sure many of you know what I mean, you start a new job and although you recognise the words as being English, they seem to be using it in an entirely new way. I know that in 6 months time I will be talking the talk too but right now I often get the feeling that I'm in the Twilight Zone. I remember an episode where a man awoke one day to find that the world had shifted and language had changed, words that were once familiar had new meaning and that is pretty much how I feel. It is good though, I relish a new challenge and I am hoping this job will prove to be interesting.

Next week I am being sent to Brussels for two days to attend an International meeting. This is a completely new experience and will hopefully be a great opportunity for me. I love travelling and seeing new places but unfortunately I suspect I will mostly see the inside of the meeting room. The meeting is due to last all day so I'm guessing the scene will be similar to the pic on the left. That's me with my feet up on the table, though I am not sure what Boris Johnson is doing there!