Thankfully I’m largely over the ‘what do I post about’ crisis, but my little one man department is struggling to do everything at the moment, so I’ll have to admit I’m human and just do what I can. Posting is one thing, not being able to comment on other people’s stuff is worse. So if you think I’m not watching you, I’m still reading, just not contributing.You know who you are.
-
Right, the next meeting of the Northern Planners is 15th March in Manchester, probably in the ‘Northern Quarter’ (fitting). We know it will be the evening, it may be boozing, but Simon is looking at other options. I’ll be there, but don’t let that put you off, since Famous Rob, JamesB, Gemma, Simon and other Love people, will be there too. Stu might be coming and Mr Furlong is a strong possibity too.
Any one else up for it? Doesn’t matter if you’re a planner, be nice to see you. We’ll update you on specifics closer to the date.
-
I think it’s the people and experiences that define places for us, and it’s amazing how little triggers can bring some of those experiences crashing back.One minute I was on the way to a meeting, then a saw this sign. Suddenly I was in my twenties again.
I was a student in Leicester, which seems an age ago, (Since I graduated in 1996 I suppose it is. What have I been doing for the last 11 years?) and a proud member of the swim team which passionately hated nearby Loughborough. In my final year, we had a ‘friendly’ at their pool – and we were lost in Loughborough when we found this very sign.
I had persuaded the men to shave their heads to mark the occasion. We looked looked very threatening and the psychological warfare proved so effective they utterly trounced us. Though few of us cared in the bar later on when the girls got interested in feeling our stubbly heads, leading to me finally resolving three years of sexual tension to and get off with a girl called Jennifer. I made an idiot of myself in front of her in the first year and had just never dared. Just shows – if you don’t ask you don’t know. Thank you Bic (and that’s why I’m not too bothered at being bald for real now).
As for Ashby…. I Worked in a Leicester nightclub to earn beer money and I met some great people -bouncers not included(if you’ve ever asked a creative to make the logo bigger you’ll understand what they’re like). It did include some people from Ashby who became close friends. Much of this I can’t really talk about, but seeing that sign brought all sorts of things flooding back, some great, some not so great, experiences that have made a great deal of difference to where I’ve ended up today, the sort of stuff that makes you grow up, whether you want it or not.
Funny how things you haven’t thought about for ages can suddenly leave you breathless, I guess it shows how important all that stuff in your subconscious really is.They say dreaming helps you sort out the day’s events into your memory banks – and if you don’t dream you go mad. No wonder.
-
…this is Melton Mowbray pork pie enjoyed in Melton Mowbray.
-
Beauty salons and hairdressers are social hubs. For many women they are a great place to socialise and escape the daily drudgery for an hour or so. For some women, is finding the right salon more about finding a confidante, maybe even some juicy gossip, as much as the ideal hairstyle. There’s something about that tension between an intimate environment and the distance from real life that makes it an ideal place to swap secrets.
It would be interesting to see how this could be tapped for, of course a chain’s communications, but also female orientated public information. Just thinking out loud………
-
Rob reckons I should post about being grumpy. That won’t be too difficult since I’m facing a 200 mile round trip on the M1 tomorrow (one of the UK’s most annoying motorways).
Speaking of motorways and driving, it’s not uncommon for people in the UK to moan about speed cameras. Actually I think it’s OK to encourage us to drive more slower – but what gets me is that they’re a bit unnecessary.If the people that make the road laws really cared about making us drive slower, why don’t they just enforce speed limiters on every car? What am I missing?
Which brings me to another point – emmisions and the future oil shortages.
The faster you go, the more miles per gallon you do – which means more emmisions and using up our oil quicker than we need. Taxes on gas guzzlers and 4×4 cars are all well and good (they wind me up too by the way) but if they really cared about the environment, again, speed limiters might be a start.
Just saying. Tell me I’m being stupid.
-
It would seem that I have nothing much to post about. I find this troubling – am I so dull I can’t find a single interesting to talk about? Hope not – I just can’t seem to get into writing about anything much. The come down from sausage action maybe?
Should I be bothered? I remember Helen talking about blog neurosis and worrying about not posting much – which it made it even worse( and take a look at her thoughts on qual research if you have a minute). So I won’t worry. Which reminds me about the joys of admitting you can’t do everything….
It’s hard living up to false expectations – those others set, but yours too. When you leave it to others to be perfect, life gets a lot less stressful. I gave up trying to be half decent at football a long time ago, now I just enjoy playing. Scoring a goal means more to me than Nick or Stu for example.
That doesn’t mean not trying, just picking the right challenges. Right now, that means blogging about something remotely interesting. Here’s hoping.
-
The first cup of the day is always the best (and must be made in a warmed pot).
-
In my dark past as an account handler, being a bit shy didn’t make life easy. Agencies, and client teams for that matter, are full of people with lots to say, and the confidence to say them. Getting a word in was difficult, but it showed that a few well chosen words can work far better than a commanding presence, and people are more likely to listen if you let them speak first.
It’s certainly helped life as planner. No one is going to want you in the room if they think they’ll have to fight to get their point accross, and being patient enough to let everyone exhaust all their points and weighing in at the end with a few simple, well chosen words makes life far easier for people like me who don’t really set a room on fire.
-
Since the only formal training I have as planner is a few APG courses, it’s no wonder I’m a fan of learning by doing. But is this always a good thing?
I saw this big bloke the gymn the other day, trying to do sit ups completely the wrong way (and don’t get me started on the futility of sit-ups in the first place). The staff were busy doing nothing as usual, but I didn’t want to interfere.
Was I right to let him get on with it and learn the hard way? Would he have welcomed some quick tips to save a stiff neck and a sore back? Failing well is important, but is it always okay to sit back and not help?
NORTHERN PLANNER 