Today marks the end of a month that’s felt very transitional.
I’m sat outside writing. The weather is set sunny for the next few days with a real feeling of summer around the corner. The contrast with the start of the month feels stark in many ways.
This month I’ve started work with two new clients, giving a new balance and variety to my typical working week.
One’s a first-time COO who I’m coaching as he navigates a new role, commercial challenges and working with an ambitious founder.
I’ve also started work with a client who’s launching a chain of affordable places for theatre actors and crew to stay in as they tour the country.
It’s fascinating to see how he’s identified a real problem that exists and is developing a genuinely innovative approach to helping the theatre community that he’s part of.
My remit is to help be his operational brain, tying together all the strands needed to move from a start-up idea to a functioning property rental business.
I took a few days off before Easter to slow down a bit too.
It was nice to have a bit of time out, but I did spend some of that time on a side project. I noticed that I’m getting more and more people contacting me out of the blue about becoming fractional leaders. I always have a 30 minute chat with them, just as others shared their experiences with me as I navigated the transition from employment to freelancing.
I ended up putting together a short email course about my journey from being an executive in a 700-person business to becoming a fractional COO. It’s now available for anyone who wants to hear about my journey and how I approached it. They can sign-up here.
This month Sarah and I launched our first Actualise.work webinar that’s coming up in mid-May. We’re doing a deep dive into the psychology of self-actualisation in leadership. It’s free and there’s more info here.
Away from work I tried something different and spent a day with my younger son learning to wingfoil. I used to windsurf back in the pre-children era and wanted to try a new wind sport, so we headed down to Rye. It was a chilly day on the water, but I enjoyed the experience of being an absolute novice and remembering how to learn something from scratch. Plus the wind was gusting so we managed some serious speed too.
Mid-month I decided to enter a 125 mile sportive around Kent in May, so I’ve been training for that over the last three weeks, getting out on the bike far more. I did 86 miles last weekend, which was lovely in the sunshine. I’m looking forward to the 125 miler this coming Sunday. It’s got me thinking again about whether to try to plan a group to take on Route des Grande Alpes from Lake Geneva to Nice next year for my 50th.
Jo and I managed to sneak away with our mates for a couple of nights in the motorhome in Kent. Spent one night at a micro-pub and the second by the seaside near Dover. Was nice to be away and enjoy waking up to a beautiful sunrise over the English Channel.
I’m a senior trustee at The Caldecott Foundation – a children’s residential care charity in Kent. Our chair steps down later this year and I’ve been leading the recruitment for a new chair of trustees. It’s been interesting to be on the client side of a recruitment process for this role, especially as I’ve recently been interviewing for People Director and COOs on behalf of a client.
Music this month…
Particularly enjoyed this very disco-ey Disco Waltons Sunday Service with Even Funkier.
Podcasts this month…
Longer days on the bike has meant time to listen to a few epic Acquired shows. The history of Rolex was a fascinating one. A colleague has recommended Sliced Bread so have added that to my playlist.
Reading this month…
Am part way through The Trauma-Informed Coach. It’s an interesting topic but I’m still thinking about how it relates to the work I do (and our work at actualise.work).
Cycling this month…
Increasing the time in the saddle. 260.7 miles.
Running this month…
Slacking off a bit as had a recovery week mid-month. 27.5 miles. Need to enter an autumn ultra to have something to aim for.
