Blue Sky Update – November 2021

Christmas is very almost upon us – so, let’s review my life in November as a career coach, writer, and human being.

It was so lovely to get away and spend a few days in Shropshire – a rare treat. And on one of our many walks, I was delighted to spot the stags at Attingham Park. I returned home – refreshed and recharged.

The beauty and simplicity of Trello

I am still working on this – my online careers resource, courtesy of Trello. For the moment, I am calling it Rethink your Career and have arranged what I think are relevant questions, articles, videos etc. under five headings:

  • Strengths
  • Dreams
  • Values
  • Purpose
  • Challenges and Adversities

Admittedly some categories are more populated than others (for some reason, challenges and Adversities is way out in front ????). Still, thanks to the ease and simplicity of Trello, I can continue to plug the gaps as I go. And if there are other resources you think I can usefully add, then please let me know. Click here to find the resources.

Strat and Chatto

The title of a family favourite – that I had almost forgotten. Strat and Chatto is the story of a clever rat and a not so bright cat (a bit like Tom and Jerry, perhaps?). Chatto, the cat, has a problem, and he hires Strat, the rat, to help him solve it. To sort things out for him. Unfortunately for Chatto, Strat’s approach is to make the problem far worse – with the help of some cockroaches and silverfish. Strat has his own agenda ????.

I don’t want to give too much away other than to say there is a happy ending (of sorts).

But rediscovering this book makes me think about the problems we face and how we approach them. How much of a problem is it? How big and how deep? Who is in the best position to help? Who might have a vested interest? Am I being rushed to sort it out?  What might happen if I ignored it?

Have you ever wondered how your voice looks?

Neither had I until I started playing around with Audacity to record some of my stories.

And this is where my inner Geek comes into play. I want to know what this pattern of waves is saying about my voice—telling me when I achieve a full, rich sound, when my voice might sound a bit thin, or when my tone lowers.

What are these squiggly lines saying about the quality of my voice? Now thanks to the beauty of YouTube, and a bit of Googling, I’ll be able to find out.

It probably is the time of year, but I have noticed more coughs, splutters and clearing of throats as I participate in various Zoom/Team calls. How many of us are paying attention to our voices and possibly taking them for granted?

Our voices are our unique instrument; I learnt this while singing, and I appreciate this each time I work with clients and colleagues alike.

Until next month

Janice

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