Tag: pledges

Pledges – A review of 2024

And so 2024 draws to a close.  Where has the year gone?    Although I note I suspect I say that every year, and at the end of each term and half term….Is it an age thing or related to the frenzied pace rushing from one half term, term, academic year or calendar year to the next; I am not sure.    But as 2024 draws to its close I think its about time for that little bit of annual reflection and a look back on my pledges which I set out in January (Read more here).

Doom Scrolling

This was something I worried about at the start of the year, that I was spending too much time mindlessly flicking through my phone.   The end of 2023 did find me feeling a bit lost with social media being a welcome distraction, albeit not a positive one.   2024 saw me install and delete TikTok on a number of occasions in relation to this, while also seeing me removing Facebook also as I made little use of it other than to consume content, and doom scroll.   Looking at quantitative figures, in late December 2023 I was on my phone around 3hrs 20mins per week however half way through December 2024 my average had dropped to 2hr 38mins based on a 5wk rolling average, so that suggests a reduction albeit it’s a little higher than the 2hr 30mins I was looking to achieve.    In terms of increased real social interactions I mentioned, am not sure whether I managed this or not.  I certainly have been out and about a bit more recently plus professionally 2024 has seen me involved in a number of groups and projects.   Maybe my ideal view of what I think I should be doing is different from what might be possible in the digital world we now live in?   Maybe I need to manage my expectations better here?

Fitness

I managed my target of running 500km this year, with a couple of weeks to spare however I didn’t manage the longer runs or a social run as I had set myself.   I did find it challenging this year, never really building up any real momentum with my running and being quite erratic at times, but sometimes it is pushing through and succeeding when things are difficult which matters.    I suspect I will relax on fitness for next year just to give my body a bit of a breather after a couple of years of 500km+ per year of running.   Again, the issue of social activities comes up as something I fell short on, but is that as I am more of an introvert and self-motivated rather than someone who really enjoys doing activities, including fitness related activities, with a group?   With a bit of OCD, do I prefer the assuredness and ease of doing things solo, versus the messiness and complexity where it involves other humans being?    Do I need to be happier in my own solo fitness efforts rather than looking towards others?

Exploring

Not sure I really did much exploring this year, although I did venture once more to Tenerife, and maybe explored Fareham and surrounding areas a little bit.   Oh and who could forget the trauma of my visit to Venice and the Grand Canal.   This is definitely an area where I have fallen short this year, but where at least some progress was made and something I need to consider for next year.    That being said, exploring and travel requires a number of pre-requisites such as time and money, both of which I have struggled at times with during 2024.

Happiness and adapting

2024 for me was very much about adapting to changes which started at the end of 2023.  It has been a difficult year with some definite dark and bright spots, with the tail end of the year starting to show signs of promise.   I think one of the challenges for me has been, being happiest when I am busy but feeling a little lost when I am less busy and should be relaxing; This is something I need to resolve, possibly in finding a better balance between work and personal life, which is something I feel I started to in the 2nd half of 2024. It is with this thought that I want to see in the new year and start 2025, hopefully growing the things that have made me happiest over the recent months.

Achievements

This year has been really busy in terms of engaging with various EdTech events with my involvement in over 20 different events, including an event in Venice.   I was also close to getting back out to the Middle East and contributing to an event out there, after almost 10 years since I was last out there however this proved a bit costly so I had to give it a miss;  Maybe something for next year!    I have repeatedly found myself referring to David Weinberger’s, “the smartest person in the room is the room” this year, so am grateful for so many opportunities to contribute to various rooms and to hear from so many amazing educational and IT professionals who are equally sharing their thoughts, knowledge and expertise.   In an increasingly frantic world, with the significant pace of technological change, our best chance continues to be to share with others and work collaboratively.  If acknowledging anyone the ANME and the Digital Futures Group are of particular note, as are my colleagues on the ISC Digital Advisory Group, who have all provided me so much help, advice and much more throughout 2024.

Conclusion

2024 is almost at an end, and my reflection rather than providing me answers has provided me more questions.   That reminds me of a quote I saw recently which said “the problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts and the stupid ones are full of confidence”.   Now am not saying I am intelligent, but I definitely have had and continue to have my doubts in many areas of my life, being it about my fitness, my career and work, my family and more, but maybe these doubts are normal.   Maybe seeking the answers is an eternal struggle, but where no answers will ever be found, and in which case maybe I need to be happy with the journey.    So maybe that’s a good way to leave this review of 2024, in saying its been a bit of a journey, with an unknown destination, but at least the weather here, where I am now compared to where I was in Dec 2023, is better!

2024 + 2 months: A review

Ok so its now the end of February, that’s 1/6 of the year gone already and I am left wondering where the time has gone.   Now part of me thinks time is flying simply as we are all becoming busier, as we do more, try to be more efficient, try to do things better, while part of me also thinks its an age thing (but I am not keen to admit to the 2nd option).    I also need to acknowledge taking on quite a number of projects however I am finding keeping busy and the diverse nature of the projects to be fun and engaging and therefore keeping me in a more positive place than I was back in December;  That said I also need to ensure I do say “No” where appropriate.    So with 2 months from 12 gone I thought it might be useful to have a quick review against my pledges from the start of the year, so here goes…..

Doom Scrolling

I think my doom scrolling on my phone has reduced which is good but I still feel I reach for my phone a little too much at the moment.   It’s the old issue of my phone and its notifications providing me with the dopamine fix, leading to checking my phone more often due to increasing dependency on this fix.   It is now less social media I am looking at and more the likes of WhatsApp;  Am not sure if that makes it better screen time or not, however the need to constantly check my phone feels like a bad thing.   That said for the time period from December to the end of February my average daily screen time had dropped to just below 2hrs 40mins which is below the 3hr target I was looking to hit so this seems to be good progress.   I will however need to continue to review this especially around my habits   

Fitness

My target was 500km for the year so with 2 months gone I am happy enough with 95km completed.  Projecting this out, if I kept up the current rate would get me above the 500km target by the end of the year.    I have also seen my pace improve and now am generally sat around the 6min/km which is a pace I am happy with.   At this point I still haven’t engaged with any social running such as a parkrun so this is definitely something I need to look towards, plus I haven’t looked at runs beyond the 5km range so again this is something for me to look at.

Exploring

So far I haven’t managed any real exploring, aside from a trip up to Sheffield to work with The National College;   There wasn’t much exploring done during the couple of days up there due to a focus on filming a number of webinars.    So this is definitely something I need to look to address with Easter likely to be the first opportunity although I suspect Easter will be focused on family rather than exploring so it may be that any exploring has to be put off until the summer at the earliest.

Happiness

This is always a difficult question to deal with;  At work our perception is likely we are happier when on holiday, but if we quantify our happiness, the reality is we are often happier when busy, engaged and operating autonomously at work.    I think I am a little happier at the moment than I was in late December and I suspect a lot of this relates to being busy and engaged in different and diverse projects and events.   But maybe this leads to a question about how I balance this out in terms of my downtime?    I am reading a bit more and spending time with the velociraptor (she’s actually a German Sheppard but having eaten 3 dining room chairs among other things I think the velociraptor reference is more than fair) plus am running regularly and there are a few other things in their early stages which are making me feel a bit better, but I suspect I have a long way to go in finding the balance I want to achieve.  My current book, Lost Connections: Why you’re depressed and how to find hope, is an interesting read which is helping, although I note I am not reading it as I necessarily feel “depressed” but more because the topic and managing our lives in this busy and technology driven world is something that interests me.   We will see how I feel about the book once I am further into it.

Achievements/Contributions

I think as with 2023 things are already shaping up well with the upcoming ISC digital conference, my work on the ISBA’s Technology Survey, work with the Association of Network Managers in Education (ANME), an event looking at esports within schools, my work with the amazing Digital Futures Group ahead of EduTech Europe 2024 and a number of other things on the cards.   The key in all of these events are the brilliant people they allow me to work with, collaborate with and bounce ideas off of, plus the amazing educators which I get to network and share with.   Oh and I can’t not mention the really enjoyable Cyber Security webinar I did only the other day with Mark Anderson and Abid Patel; Is always great sharing with these two amazing individuals, but I clearly need to continue to work on Mark in relation to moving over to Scotland’s favourite soft drink rather than coffee. Abid is on the Irn-Bru Extra which is at least part way there!

Conclusion

I think, two months into 2024, I am still trying to find my new normal but I am happier with that than I was.   Maybe my new normal isn’t a fixed place but something more fluid, but where I am more accepting and happy of this fluidity?    It is still early days for 2024 but I am positive about what lies ahead and that’s a good place to start from.   

As I often find myself saying; onwards and upwards!   

Jan 2023: a quick review

It’s been a busy January and I can’t believe how quickly time has flown.  As such I thought it might be a good opportunity to take stock and do a little bit of reflection using my 2023 pledges as a starting point.

Podcast

I set a plan for releasing a podcast of at least 6 to 8 episodes at some point in 2023.   This has led to a discussion with a colleague, Ian Stockbridge, where we have been discussing some sort of collaboration for a while now however never managed to actually put aside time and make anything happen.   In January however we both have put time aside and started a little Podcast project with 5 episodes already recorded and a few more planned.   As such it looks like my plan to get a podcast released is well on its way and likely to see fruition and the release of episodes in Feb/Mar this year.

Time Management

Am not sure much has changed on the time management front as January has certainly flown by.   I do however hope I have started to build some new more effective time management habits however only time will tell.

Running

It was a ropey start to January with no running at all done in the first week however I picked up in week 2 and by the end of the month had managed 12 runs and 65km.   The 65km mark is higher than the 50km per month I planned, but would see me again break the 750km mark as I did in 2021 and 2022.  As such this is progressing well.

Reading

Managed one book so far in January, mainly due to a train journey which allowed me to get a significant amount of reading in.   Continuing to read will be very much dependent on my finding the relevant opportunities and time in my day as we progress through the remainder of the year.   I suspect this is one pledge which I may fall short on.

Big Picture

I have already taken the step to roll smaller tasks together however I still think I am being drawn to more operational rather than strategic matters.  I suspect this is something I will need to continue to work on during the course of the year.

Holidays and Experiences

January hasn’t provided too many opportunities however I already have a couple of plans which I am looking to put in place in relation to building experiences and arranging holidays.   I am also trying to ensure I note any achievements so I am better able to reflect when, in the future, I look back on 2023.

Contributions to Edu and Tech

I have already had a few opportunities including a podcast, a webinar and also some guides I have been involved in producing.  In terms of the remainder of the year there are a few events I hope to be involved in plus a number of different ideas and projects I am actively seeking to explore.   I have also enjoyed contributing to discussion in relation to Artificial Intelligence such as ChatGPT as I see such potential for the use of AI solutions like this however I also see significant risks which we need to consider and seek to mitigate.  January has also furnished me the opportunity to attend my first face to face conference of the year in a Microsoft and ANME event at which I was an attendee, finding it to be useful and interesting.    Overall, I hope that when I look back, 2023 will have been a good year in terms of my contributions to education and technology in education.

Work

I have enjoyed spending a bit of time discussing digital citizenship with various year group assemblies both in December but continuing into January.   This is definitely something I want to build on going forward.   Equally enjoyable have been the esports groups I have been involved in who have positively took on competition among themselves, and who hopefully may consider moving on to compete with other schools/colleges in the 2024 season.

Conclusion

I have achieved more in January than I thought I would have done, albeit this means I have been very busy indeed at times.   In turn this has meant time has flown by, however it has also meant I have not had the reflective time I would have liked but sadly you cant have it both ways.    If I had more time stopping and thinking, I doubt I would have had the time to achieve as much.   As such I will need to keep an eye on this balance and check it continues to be at a point I am happy with.  I note as I write this that the start of feb saw me fall ill with a cold;  Was this just due to weather or maybe just trying to do a little too much;  I am not sure.

In terms of new opportunities and experiences I think I can already identify three in my collaborative podcast, a little consultative work and also in the initial discussions regarding a conference in Europe at which I will hopefully contribute later in the year.  Given only one month gone, I think this is good progress and something I can continue to build on.

So, 1 month down, 11 months to go……..onwards to the rest of 2023!

Pledges for 2023

In thinking about the pledges for the coming year I think I need to include an equal share of big picture, more strategic aims, alongside some more measurable smaller targets.   I think this should provide a balance between things which will be easier to assess in terms of achievement at the end of the year, alongside aims which are much broader, more challenging but also equally more difficult to evaluate come the end of the year.

So lets get into my pledges for 2023…..

Podcast

I last did some short podcast episodes in 2021 with a plan to build on this in 2022 however other priorities meant this didn’t happen.   It is definitely something I want to progress and something I have been in discussion with a colleague about, however have so far not managed to progress.    For 2023 it would be good to get maybe 2 seasons of podcasts produced and shared, with hopefully at least 6 or 8 episodes in each.    My thinking would be focus on cyber security, digital citizenship, data protection and technology in schools as the key themes of the podcasts.

Time management

The last few years have felt as if time has been flying by, with weeks, months, terms and years flying by in what seems like the blink of an eye.   I think therefore, in the year ahead, I want to look at how I manage time particularly trying to ensure I allocate specific time for reading, for exercise, for relaxing, etc, building up appropriate habits in relation to how I use the finite time available in each day, week, month and year.    Part of this will likely start with some long term initial planning at the start of the year in January.   My hope is that through better planning of my time I will be more satisfied with how it is used, but also will achieve a better balance between being busy and relaxing.   

Also related to this, especially at home, I need to let and encourage others to contribute rather than trying to take things on myself.  More delegation should hopefully allow me to achieve more or at the very least focus on things which are more important or where my efforts add the most value.

Running

I would again like to keep up my running in 2023 however with more consistency.  As such am thinking a minimum of 50km per month, which would equate to 600km for the year as a minimum.   I would also like to very much achieve at least one 10km run every two months, so meaning I should have completed six 10km runs by the end of the year.   Now it would be good to achieve more however I am also concious of avoiding pushing my exercise too much.    From a weight point of view I want to try and keep my weight around the 84kg mark, which was always part of my aim in terms of regular running.

Reading

Having struggled with reading in 2022 I would like to again stick with trying to read 6 non-fictions books by the end of the year.  This equates to one book every two months which I think should be achievable.    I already have a number of books purchased ready to read.   I will share some info on some of the titles in a future post.

Bigger picture

The last couple of years I have worked hard on maintaining a to-do list however I feel this may have led to me focussing on things at a micro and small scale, and in focusing there I have taken my eye of the bigger picture.     As such, in the year ahead, I need to spend more time looking at the bigger picture, at strategic tasks and aims over the smaller day to day tasks.    Part of this will be rolling up the regular day to day tasks which currently exist as separate tasks to achieve and considering them as a singular grouped task, taking the small tasks each day and bundling them up as routine single task.   Equally I will need to establish the more strategic projects, tasks and aims that I want to look at possibly either on a monthly or termly basis.  

Holidays and Experiences

I would like to ensure I create some new memories, particularly family ones in 2023.    There are clear opportunities over the summer holiday period, easter holiday period and also key points in the year such as my birthday, wedding anniversary, etc.   I need to make sure that I make the most of each of these opportunities.   I think it will also be important to take photos as a record of events so I have something to look back on and refer to.     Linked to this, I think it will also be important to continue journalling and keeping records of achievements, etc, on a week by week basis, again so that I have something to refer back to in being able to more effectively and accurately reflect on the year once I get to the end of it.   Part of me wonders about having achievements and challenges as part of my journal template so that it makes me stop and think, plus take note as I regularly seek to journal my thoughts and feelings.

Contributions to the wider Edu and Tech communities

I would very much like to see me building on 2022 in 2023 including continuing to contribute to other organisations, podcasts, blogs, magazines, etc with my thoughts and ideas.    It has been very enjoyable and at times challenging to do this in 2022 however I have definitely considered it to be worthwhile so it is clearly something I want to continue.    I would be particularly good to be involved in some bigger conferences if possible and even in some international events however this will be dependent on logistics, etc.     It will also be useful to explore the potential for new opportunities and challenges so this needs to be something I keep my eyes open for as 2023 progresses.

I have considered personal studying a certification as an option for 2023 however had decided that the cost v benefit especially of the technical certifications I have been looking at is not sufficient to justify the time, effort and cost.   This may however be something for me to reconsider as the year progresses.

Work

In work I cannot think of a particular target or focus in 2023 however if there was to be something it is in relation to innovation and change.   I would like to be able to focus on innovation and change projects and hopefully creating a culture and appropriate support functions which encourage and promotes this.   Other than this, I hope to support the members of my team to grow and develop such that they are able to continue to feel engaged, challenged and also to better contribute to the school.

Conclusion

In work I often use a single word or phrase as a theme or focus.   I think this might also be useful in setting my pledges for 2023.  So what one word or phrase would summarise what I want to achieve:

              New opportunities and experiences

I think the above summarises what I want from 2023.   2022 has felt a little routine, albeit with some notable achievements and positive points, but I just don’t feel there were enough truly memorable moments mainly as our memory needs the unusual and the new.   So in 2023 I hope to try and find and achieve the unusual and new.   Here’s to 2023 and the year ahead.   

And happy new year and all the best for 2023 to all in my PLN.

Reflections on 2022

We are at the end of yet another year, and this time, the end of 2022 so its time to briefly blog a bit of a reflection on my year. The easiest place to start in reviewing the year is the pledges I made at the beginning of 2022.

Exercise and Health

2022 saw me once again reach 750km of running for the year however it saw me much more inconsistent than I had been in 2021.   Although I managed to run over 100km in each of 4 months, more than I had managed before, I also had some months where I achieved very little distance at all.   In terms of distance, I did finally manage to achieve a couple of 10km runs although these runs were rather broken and slow.     My speed over the whole period continued to be rather slow, being on average 6:21 min/km whereas I would have very much likely to have been closer to the 6-minute mark.  That said, throughout my years running my focus was always on achieving the distances regularly rather than on building up my speed.    Towards the end of the year, I did start to suffer some joint and muscle pains so decided to rest from mid-December onwards to allow me to then look to restart in 2023.

I suggested at the start of 2022 that another health related plan was to reduce my alcohol intake.  Sadly, this didn’t really happen and the idea of a “dry” month certainly never looked like happening.   Now, I enjoy a beer especially when watching the football or a good film, plus it is one of the few vices I believe I have so I am not too disappointed on failing to meet this pledge.   It is important to balance trying to achieve things, to work hard, etc, with also having a bit of fun.  I suspect my alcohol intake is overall slightly less than in 2021 although I don’t have any really evidence to support this, so this may simply be me justifying not doing more.

Another area of health which didn’t work out in 2022 related to dental accidents with a number of accidents during 2022 resulting in dental treatment which I find difficult, and that’s even before, as a Scotsman, I get to having to pay for it!

I also note that as I finished work in December I fell ill with a bit of a flu (not covid!).  Upon looking back to 2021 the same issue had occurred with illness in December.   I wonder if this is me simply pushing too hard and failing to consider my health, then as the term and year ends and I relax, the strain on my body catches up with me, manifesting in illness.  Maybe something to think about next year in ensuring I take care of myself as term ends in order to hopefully avoid a period of illness over the festive season.

Wellbeing /Happy memories

Sitting here writing this things don’t quickly come to mind although a family holiday abroad, our first since the pandemic does come to mind and was enjoyable.  I also thoroughly enjoyed a trip with my wife as part of our anniversary which saw us spend a few days in London together, even taking in a stage show and seeing a number of historic sites around London.   There are also a number of other significant memories created during the course of 2022 however I will not go on to list these here.  So this is all positive.

I think part of the issue here is that I maybe don’t have a great long term memory and therefore find it difficult to quickly reflect.   To that end I started noting things, achievements, etc, starting in March 2022 to help me with this.    Reviewing this it seems clear a vast majority of the notable things from 2022 relate to either my job or to the wider education and technology sectors in which I work rather than to personal or family related things.  This is something I need to think a bit more on in terms of my work/life balance and whether it is a balance I am happy with.

One memory I will have for 2022 will definitely be turning up to the Houses of Parliament to attend a morning meeting, but sadly attending on the wrong day, a day to early, followed by feeling ill and not being able to attend the event on the correct day.  Ooops.

Reading

I didn’t read quite as much as intended or would have liked during the course of the year.   I think I maybe managed 6 or 7 books rather than my normal 12 books although I did start to read some fiction in addition to my non-fiction, enjoying re-reading Frank Herbert’s Dune and also a number of HP Lovecraft short stories.    The issue was generally one of time and priorities with reading sitting with a reasonably low priority.  This was however helped by the various conference and other events I attended which required train travel, thereby providing me with an opportunity to catch up on reading.

Contributing

This is likely the area where I think I did best during 2022.   I had opportunities to contribute to several different education and technology conferences or other events as a speaker, panellist, or guest while also developing a number of different bits of content for various organisations.   There were also many brilliant opportunities to network and catch up with colleagues from across the UK including the ANME ambassadors, Bukky Yusuf, Mark Anderson, Al Kingsley, Olly Lewis, Abid Patel and Emma Darcy to name but a few.  The fact that Abid Patel presented me with a can of my favourite Bru (intentional spelling) at an event being a particular highlight.   I was also both surprised but also very pleased to be nominated for Network Manager of the Year as part of the EduFuturist awards for 2022.  This was definitely not something I had expected or even hoped for.    As such am not sure I could have achieved much more that I did in 2022.    Here’s hoping for the same kind of opportunities in 2023.

Work

I think the year in work went well with the fact I have began to take notes of achievements being a useful aide-mémoire to help in assessing this.   When I addressed my team before the school broke up for Christmas it was good to be able to go back to the summer holidays and the beginning of term and list off some of the many things we have done, introduced or changed during the course of a single term, where had I not noted these down they may have simply slipped from memory.  

Other achievements

2022 once again saw me take on an external accreditation in ISC2s Certified in Cybersecurity.   It had been a number of years since I had last needed to take on a proper exam so I was a little nervous.   As it turned out a lot of the content overlapped with some of the other accreditations I already held and as such I didn’t find the exam to be that challenging but was still happy to achieve confirmation of my achievement of the certification.

Conclusion

2022 was a busy year and I think I crammed quite a bit into it.   I think one of my issues is that I seek that single highly significant and memorable event where this just didn’t happen in 2022, or indeed in a number of the preceding years.    This may detract from the many lesser events and achievements I did reach in 2022 and hence leave me feeling a little depressed or under appreciative of what I did achieve.   For 2023 I need to get passed this and be more positive and appreciative of that which I can and do achieve.

And so with my quick review of 2022 out of the way, it is onwards to 2023.   I want to try and treat 2023 as a fresh start and new year so hopefully be able to look back, around a year from now, and find my reflections on 2023 are not merely a repeat of those from 2022.    My next blog post will therefore focus on pledges for 2023 and how I might bring about the change I would like to see.

Pledges 2022

Once again it is time to write my pledges for the year and I note this year a number of people online suggesting they won’t be sharing any pledges this year due to current pandemic situation being stressful enough, without adding the additional pressure of trying to meet some well meaning targets set at the beginning of the year.    I can totally get this thinking;   If you look at my review of 2021 you will get a sense of how I felt I “survived” the year rather than making progress, growing or flourishing as I would have liked to.    As such I considered not sharing any pledges this year however I have decided to stick with it and share.   I share my pledges, most likely for my future self rather than for anyone else, although I hope you find some use or insight in my thoughts too.   I share these targets with clear understanding of how the last two years have been challenging, unpredictable and [forgive me for saying it] unprecedented, and the year ahead already looks like it will be no different.   But I will share my pledges nonetheless, albeit I may adjust my expectations accordingly.

So let’s get started:

Exercise and Health:

I have done very well in the last year with my exercising and general fitness and in particular with running.   My plan for this year is to try to maintain this, and to again manage 750km worth of running during the course of 2022.   Now I acknowledge this will very much be dependent on my health as illness will impact on my ability to run however, I think it’s a fair target.   I also note the maximum distance I have run to date in a single session has been 8km.   By the end of 2022 I would like to be able to complete a full 10km running session, even if this involves some periods in the session where I may slow to a walking pace.  

Another area I would like to work on this year is reducing my alcohol intake so managing a month period (so 30 or 31 days) without a beer.   I suspect this will be a challenge as for me a beer has always been key to relaxing or to helping with stress, however I am concious that reliance can have a negative impact on health.   As such I want to try to adjust what for me is a habit.

Wellbeing / Happy memories:

A key aspect when I reflect on the year past is those memories of positive or enjoyable events.   This year I want to build in more of these, so more occasions where I do something outside my normal.  This might simply be getting away for a break, or doing a new activity, or buying something memorable but the key thing is to generate positive memories which will come to mind when I look back on the year in the December 2022.     I have already started considering possible ideas here with a planned holiday already on the cards, and a possible idea to do something a bit different in Dec 2022.    That gives me at least 2 items but ideally, I want to have 6, so something to remember in each of every 2 month period.

Reading:

My reading has become a bit of a habit with 12 books minimum read per year, however it has become a habit which has lost some of the enjoyment and some of the learning, replaced by simply process.   I would like to get back to enjoying more of my reading this year and to again learning more.    As such I am only looking at reading 6 books this year but including some non-fiction in there for enjoyment and being more selective of the books I read for learning purposes.   I also need to be better at simply putting a book down where it isnt working for me.    I hope to look back in Dec 2022 and to have renewed my enjoyment in the reading I have done.

Contributing:

This is something I want to focus on this year, continuing my current contributions to Technology in Education and Education more generally but also to the IT sector as well possibly.    This will include my tweets and social media contributions, my blogs and my podcasts plus my involvement in different groups including the Association of Network Managers in Education (ANME).    I also want to try to develop new opportunities and ways for me to contribute and share with others.

Work:

Lots gets done during year and I think that can be my problem in that I don’t, at the end of the year, quite appreciate all the work and effort that has gone into all that has been achieved.   As such this year I want to take regular breaks to stop and reflect on all that is achieved and on the work required to make these achievements actually happen.   Very seldom is any task in my role achieved simply, instead they involve meetings with stakeholders, planning time, implementation, faulting finding and problem solving, adjustment and evaluation.   I need to be more appreciative of this work, albeit it sits behind projects or tasks which appear simple when written down on a bulleted list of to-do items.

I think in my work life I am also seeking some new challenges.    For this I already have some thoughts and projects which will help here including a project in relation to contributing and sharing as mentioned earlier.   This very much comes down to me making things happen and is down to a bit of creativity and innovation on my part.

Conclusion

For the last couple of years three words have been in my thinking being prioritisation, entropy and reasonableness.   When I look back from Dec 2022 on these pledges, I aim to have these words in my mind to ensure that the pledges here do not unnecessarily add stress to the days, weeks and months ahead.   If I need to prioritise other things, over the above pledges, if the world, my role, etc changes unexpectedly or if the pledges become unreasonable in the context 2022, then not meeting them is fair and totally expected.   That said, for me anyway, having the pledges provides an insight on my thinking as it is today, for me to reflect on once I reach the end of the year.   It provides an outline for a planned direction, again for reflection, even if I end up not fulfilling some of the detailed actions.    For me anyway, I think there is more benefit in writing this than there is a risk of this causing unnecessary stress for myself.   But this is an individual decision we each need to reach.

2022 is another year.    2022 is another opportunity to feel positive about my efforts.   And so with this in mind, I need to make 2022 the year I want it to be; This makes me think of Covey’s circles;  I shouldn’t allow that which I cant control or change, my circle of concern, to impact on my happiness and sense of progress.   I should however focus on that which I can control or change, my circle of influence.    And with that in mind, its onwards and upwards!

Pledges for 2020

It’s that time again to make some pledges for the year ahead.    I think it is important to document this to give the older me, in a years’ time, something to look back on.   I have long accepted that memory is far from accurate and therefore there is a need to keep a record.

So, what do I want to achieve in 2020?

As it happens, I already have a few plans in place for the year ahead, so this seems like a good place to start.

2020 sees me planning for a memorable family holiday significantly out with the standard break away we have had over the last two years.   My hope is this trip will be filled with memories but also will provide us something to look forward to for a fair part of the year, plus will open up our horizons to considering where we can visit in future.   As a family we are creatures of habit, visiting the same places rather than exploring new locations; This is something I would like to see change this year.

Another plan for the year involves me presenting at DigiFest in March.   This is something I want to try and do more of, whether this is presenting at events or contributing to online events, etc.   I want to collaborate and contribute to the #EdTech , #DigitalCitizenship and #Cyber sectors more actively in the year ahead.    Additionally, I want to try and establish at least one group of interested individuals to engage in discussion around one or more of the above topic areas.

Exercise is something last year I improved significantly upon, getting to the end of CouchTo5K.   I would like to repeat this feat in 2020 and consider how I might build on this, although to be honest I will be perfectly happy if I can at least match my accomplishments from 2019.

I would also like to repeat my reading target in the year ahead, aiming to read at least 12 books during the year.   This is something I have achieved in each of the last few years however this year I would like to see how I can make use of my reading to inform and support my professional development more.    As such I want to spend time this year drawing together the strands and ideas from the various books I have read.

My main target for 2020 is going to be one of reflection.   I need to reflect and think carefully about what I want to achieve.   This is very much related to my questioning of my aim to be “happier”, a target I set myself at the start of 2019.   I now question whether such a target was constructive to me as an individual despite sounding like a well meant and aspirational target.    Is my focus too much on the future and past and not sufficiently looking at the moment and the now?    But linked to this if I spend to much time reflecting on the past I may miss out on opportunities in the present.   I suspect this will be hard for me to consider however seldom is anything worthwhile easy to achieve.

Another target for me is to seek some sort of new challenge.  Am not at this point sure what that new challenge is.    My initial thoughts focus on establishing some sort of discussion forum or group and growing it, such as the #DigitalCitizenship group I mentioned above.  Another thought revolves around either starting to regularly podcast or videocast; I have thought of both in the past but never took it much further than simply considering.   I suspect this is partly due to both being slightly outside my comfort zone, however anything that is likely to be a challenge is likely to be at least slightly outside you comfort zone.   Given this, it may be that establishing a video or pod cast maybe something for me to take on in 2020.

Last year I summed everything up, in terms of what I wanted to achieve, with the word Balance and I think this is something I will stick with.    Balance between personal and work, between reflecting and living in the moment, between relaxation and (positive) stress, etc.  Everything is very much about establishing a balance which you are happy about and which allows you to enjoy life as it happens;  As that famous saving goes, “enjoy life now, this is not a rehearsal”.

And so my pledges for 2020 are set…….game on!

 

 

 

2019 in review

I need to state that for me 2019 is a year I would probably prefer to forget.    It is not with any great ease that I say this however some of the events of 2019 have caused much stress, upset and difficulty.   On the other hand, and trying to take a positive from the year, myself and my family have progressed beyond the issues of the opening few months of the year and hopefully learned from them.   I hope that we are stronger for them but either way, they are now in the past and it is time to progress onwards.

So, looking back to my pledges as stated at the end of 2018 (You can read these here), what have I or have I not achieved.

Family

As mentioned above, as a family it was a very challenging year.   My hope had been to spend more time together and build more opportunities for memories, etc however this didn’t happen.   Time was spent however some of it building memories that would be better forgotten.   Sadly, I am not currently comfortable going into more detail on this topic but maybe some day in the future I will share more.

It is worth noting however that we did have our eldest down between Christmas and New Year which was very nice.   As he is now in his 20’s we don’t see him as often as we would like but he does have his own life to lead so it was very nice that he took time to travel down to us for a couple of days.

We did also have our 2nd annual holiday away which was very nice and something, for a large number of years, we lacked as a family.   It is now our hope that in 2020 we do something particularly special in terms of holidays and to avoid this becoming a wish/dream only we have actually went ahead and booked significantly in advance as opposed to our usual act of last minute bookings.

Exercise, Wellbeing and Reading

Finally completing Couch to 5K

On the exercise front I achieved my plan for completing couch to 5K, in fact I almost completed it twice, so I am very happy I managed to get into a constructive exercise habit.  I even ended up going for a run on both Christmas Eve and on Boxing Day which is something I didn’t foresee happening at the outset of the year.   For me this was significant progress as I have never really been a sporty or fitness person.  Sadly, following recent testing, it seems my blood pressure may be higher than it should be which means I clearly need to do more on the exercise front.

Again, I achieved my target of reading 12 books and a number of them I very much enjoyed and think they added to both my knowledge and understanding.   My library of books is starting to look quite impressive in my eyes at least.  The one issue I have had however is that my reading has not been constant enough throughout the year, instead being made up of a number of smaller sprints through books.  This is something I want to consider next year.

And feeling happier; That was an ambitious target.   Sadly, with everything that happened at the start of the year, various stresses throughout the year and my more recent concerns I am not sure I have achieved this.   And sadder still is the fact, if there was anything important to achieve this was probably it.   I suppose the challenge becomes asking what makes me happy and do I even know what makes me happy?   Not an easy question to answer.   And from my recent reading there is also the question of whether seeking to be “happier” is actually something I should be doing or whether I should be focusing more on taking all that I can from what I have.    Possibly a little too deep and meaningful a question for so early in the calendar year but maybe something for a future blog post.

Professional development

I think I have developed as a professional this year on several fronts albeit I haven’t done many Udemy or other courses and haven’t picked up many certificates.   What I have done however is read and explore topics, ask questions and challenge ideas and try to get more involved in communities discussing areas which I find of interest.   I have also attended and event presented at some excellent events.

Work

Development of an IT Strategy was a key focus of a lot of the year however as the school sought to clarify and launch a vision of its own, I decided that the IT strategy take a back burner.    Discussions on mobile devices were ongoing and some progress made including starting the trialing new devices.   We have also been made progress in relation to deploying One-drive and Microsoft Teams.    If I was trying to sum up the year, I would possibly use the word “momentum” as I fell a number of projects which had been slow burning for some time gathered pace and made reasonable progress in 2019.   Clearly in the year ahead this is something I need to build upon.

Overall

A year ago, I summed up my plans for the year with one word; Balance.    Sadly, I don’t think I achieved this as early in the year events threw things so far out of kilter that it most likely wasn’t until the middle of the year that I got close to achieving any balance.   From then it has simply been a fight to catch up.

As I said at the outset, 2019 is a year I would rather forget however to forget is to lose sight of the number of valuable, albeit at time painful, lessons learned.    I need to take as much as I can from 2019, one thing helped by my keeping of a journal through large parts of the year.    Maybe reflection will be something I need to spend significant time on in 2020.

And so with this it is on to 2020, with my plans for the year ahead to be shared shortly…

 

2019, another new year

It is that time again to write my new years resolutions, my pledges for the year ahead and once again I face the same challenge.   I could select SMART targets such as to read 12 books but in picking something so easily measurable there is a danger that I focus on the target, and select 12 books which are shorter and easier to read rather than picking more challenging reads, which may take more time to read however in the long term will be more useful.    There is also danger that I pick a target that I then quickly achieve early in the year, leaving me to look back at the end of 2019 having achieved everything in the first couple of months.    The other option is I pick bigger goals such as to develop my understanding of learning and how individuals learn.    This is a much bigger goal however is difficult to measure in terms of my success in achieving it.

For 2019 my plan is to set some over arching strategic targets, which are big goals, but within each to also indicate some initial shorter SMART targets.   My hope is this should give me a balance of micro and macro level goals.

And so onto the new years resolutions, pledges or goals for the year ahead:

Family                                 

A key target for the year ahead is to have a family holiday together.    This is something we haven’t done for a while, other than last summer.   As such I think this should now become an annual event as it gives the opportunity to spend some uninterrupted family time together, to decompress and to relax.

A wider target would be to make more family time together.   This needs to involve actually sitting down to dinner together, to playing football with my youngest, to going out as a family on the occasional weekend.   Myself and my wife will also need to seek to make more time for each other, with “date night” a clear possibility however given our working patterns we will need to work on resolving the logistical issues.

Exercise, Wellbeing and Reading

This year rather than having separate targets for exercise and readings I have decided to roll them all up into a single area for focus.

In terms of SMART targets, my key targets will be to complete the 9 weeks of Couch to 5K before the end of the calendar year and to read my usual 12 books, one book per month.

Looking towards a wider target, I want to feel happier in myself at the end of the year.   This will mean trying to strike a balance between work and personal life.    In with work I include my efforts in blogging and posting on social media.   My work doesn’t just include my job but includes other tasks and activities which I do as part of my wider professional contribution to education and to IT.  I would also like to start podcasting during 2019 however I need to be conscious that I need to achieve a better work/life balance and to be more comfortable taking time out to relax.

Professional Development

Having achieved certifications in each of the last three years, and conscious of the fact that I will need to re-certify which will require me to repeat my exams, I am not going to set myself a target of a specific certification in 2019.   Instead I am going to focus on some specific areas of interest with these being cyber security and data analytics in particular.   I hope to be able to use Udemy courses and various books as my method of study with a view to being knowledgeable and experienced in relation to these topics by the time 2019 draws to a close.

Work

I have found thinking about work targets a little difficult as I have a number of projects currently underway which therefore could all make for good, SMART, targets.   It is therefore key for me to think about what is most important and for this I think the development of a key statement of the schools IT strategy, to be shared with all staff and pupils, is most important.   Linked to this will be our approach to staff training on EdTech and also our device strategy for the next couple of years.    As it stands we are using 1:1 iPads however with these devices up for review in the next couple of years, now is the time to consider alternatives and make a decision as to the devices we will be using for the next 4 or 5 years.

As a more strategic goal I think my key area to work on in 2019 will be empowering my team such that they can lead on various projects across the school.    I think this year I need to make more use of my middle leaders and their skills, experience and knowledge and support them to be more proactive.

Overall

I have noted on social media a number of people identifying a single word to symbolise their plans for 2019.    I have given this some thought to try and identify what word I would most identify with and in my case it would be:

Balance

I need to reach balance as I seek to engage in social media, contributing to both the education and IT sectors, deliver as a Director of IT, be successful as a family member, father and husband and continue to develop as a professional and a person.    Balance therefore seems like the most important word.    My hope would be that next year when I get to the end of the year I can be more positive on what has been achieved having actually built in time to sit and reflect throughout the year, rather than rushing to cram everything in and finding the year has sped past in the blink of an eye.

And so 2018 draws to a close and 2019 begins.   I look forward to the year ahead which would be my 21st year working within education.    I have worked in international schools, further education, higher education, state schools and now independent schools.    I wonder what new opportunities and challenges I can find or create in the year ahead.

My first 12 books of 2018; done!

I set out this year to continue my habit of trying to read at least one book per month throughout the year.   My aim being to read some light self-help books along with some significantly heavier texts.  I wanted to read across a couple of different topics.

And so, in August the 8th month of year, I finished my 12th book and met my target.   So far I have read:

  • The fourth education revolution, Anthony Seldon
  • Make it stick, Peter C Brown, Henry L Roediger and Mark A McDaniel
  • SUMO (Shut up and move on), Paul McGee
  • The upside of rationality, Dan Ariely
  • Open, David Price
  • The gift of failure, Jessica Lahey
  • Change, Richard Gerver
  • The Cyber Effect, Mary Aiken
  • The $100 Startup, Chris Guillebeau
  • The marshmallow effect, Walker Mischel
  • Mindfulness, Gill Hasson
  • The Art of balance, David J Bookbinder

Although I have hit my target for the year I still look forward to further reading in the remaining months of 2018.    I continue to try to ensure that my bookshelf is never empty of books yet to read.    I think it was in Naseem Talebs Black Swam where he mentioned the importance not of the books you have read, but of the books yet to read.   There is always room to learn more, to refine or change your views and to continue to evolve.   This is something I hope to continue to do.

I must also acknowledge that reading has also become a bit of a wellbeing activity for me.   It provides an opportunity to step away from the stresses and concerns of the working week and managing a household.   It provides me a space to relax.     And on my return to the normal week I often am able to take a fresh perspective on issues or to arrive at new ideas or solutions.

My bookshelf still has a number of books unread on it, including a couple of heavy but interesting titles.   I also intend to revisit a book I read some time ago in Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence.

So with that I will put my laptop down and get back to reading.