Dear friends,
Oh my goodness, May, otherwise known as May-cember or the 100 days of May, is here. Recitals, end-of-the-school-year festivities, graduations, here we come! Are we ready?! I wish you the best for the coming busy month ahead!
This month my work taught me an interesting lesson and left me with a productivity challenge. I’ll share my learning first and then pose a question for which I hope I can crowdsource some answers.
Over the course of the last month, I have spent significant time in work or work-adjacent socializing, and there’s more ahead! I know opinions range widely on sponsored (or as some call it, forced) fun. I am very lucky that I really like my colleagues, many of whom I have known my entire career, and I generally enjoy gatherings. Often when I have a work event, I have a specific goal or mission. I usually have in mind whom I want to catch up with or what I want to learn about.
I found myself in a much more spontaneous, or some might say, unprepared, mode with the last few occasions. Perhaps because I am still not back to my well-planned baseline, I have been approaching social time with colleagues casually and without an agenda. To my surprise, the lack of preparation actually increased my enjoyment. I have had unexpected conversations that have given me new ideas, and I made connections that feel deeply authentic, even in a short time. Randomly, we had an arts-and-crafts table exercise at our division retreat, and I found that being engaged creatively while chatting casually sparked novel, engaging interactions with longtime colleagues. I loved the open-endedness so much that when I recently hosted a professional network, I opted not to have any programming besides introductions. I worried people might get bored, but it was just the opposite. There were incredibly dynamic conversations. So, I invite you to reduce the structure in your work gatherings and make space for organic connections.
After my intense travelling stint, it took me about 3 weeks of being home before I felt like I was back in my routine for fitness, cooking, sleep, etc. That’s too long! How do you get back into your routines after travel or disruption? I’ll share your best practices in my next post. Please share widely, as usual, and let others know they can sign up here.
Warmly,
Urmimala