That felt like a tough month. My energy is quite low but I’m glad it’s weekend.
There’s been quite a lot of complexity to wrestle with this month of one sort or another and I feel like it’s taken it out of me a bit.
But on a more positive note, it’s also my 22nd wedding anniversary which is an opportunity to recognise how thankful I am to be married to my brilliant wife. I know I don’t say it enough, but I really am grateful to her for the support, patience and love through the ups and downs of life.
Workwise there’s been a lot going on and as I sit looking back it’s been pretty intense. In between plenty of client work some of there are some particular highlights that stand out.
The month began with a client’s rebranding launch party in Soho. They’re a cyber consultancy that I’ve worked with for just over a year now. It was great to see them deliver a successful rebrand and use that as a springboard for their marketing activities.
I also went along to another client event mid-month, hearing about Tiktok content from different perspectives: brand, agency, platform and creator. I was impressed with a strong turnout and interesting angles from each of the panel.
Last week we held an Extra Brain board afternoon where we explored our longer term ambitions for the business as a newly formed group of founding partners. We rounded the day off with “Friends of Extra Brain” drinks on the terrace at The Carpenters Arms in London’s Fitzrovia.
I also seem to have done a lot of interviewing this month, both for clients and for The Caldecott Foundation. I’ve met some really interesting potential charity chairs, COOs and FDs along the way.
Unfortunately client commitments meant I missed a dinner with my fellow COO Roundtable members, which was a shame as it’s been a few months since I caught up with them in person.
In between all that I made good progress this month on a couple of new early stage experiments too.
Sarah delivered a fascinating webinar for Actualise looking at founder psychology. We’ll be rolling out more content on this topic soon as we grow awareness of the founder / leadership team coaching packages that Actualise is delivering.
I also soft launched an online course that I’ve created for executives who want to go fractional. Initial signs are positive so I’m working with a social consultant to help drive audiences for this. It’s a new area for me so lots to learn and many mistakes to make along the way I’m sure. There are more details here.
At weekends my wife and I have been doing more walking together, taking our smaller dog out and exploring the local countryside together. It’s been nice to enjoy the sunshine together away from screens and chores at home.
Music this month…
Enjoying exploring Greg Wilson‘s live mixes this month. A very talented DJ spanning genres with ease.
Podcasts this month…
A bit of light relief with more exploration of the “What It’s Like To Be” back catalogue this month.
Reading this month…
Am reading “Empire of AI: Inside the reckless race for total domination” by Karen Hao. As the title suggests, it’s a deeper more critical look at the tech AI arms race. Useful perspective compared to much of the AI boosterism in my feeds.
Cycling this month…
251.5 miles.
Running this month…
Upping the miles. 49.1 miles
