Pieces of a Man Think it. Do it. Be it. Embellish.

67.68.69.70.71.72.73.74.75.76 77.78.79.80.81.82.83.84.85.86 87.88.89.90.91.92.93.94.95.96 97.98.99.00.01.02.03.04.05.06 07.08.09.10

... 55 to go. I'm just now flying past Wembley on the Virgin Invader Pendolino, headed back up North after a day in London. I'm expecting hot towels and champagne for the £270 ticket that my dumb institution provided through its outsourced travel agent, but all I have is a woman opposite me sneezing. I told them very clearly that the trip was £95 on thetrainline.com but I guess it was more than someone's job was worth to act on it. One to remember next time we're being lectured about the current economic climate and the need for efficiencies.

Next time I pass this way it'll be for something truly priceless, though; the return of Gil Scott-Heron at the Royal Festival Hall in April. He was on the Today programme this morning, sharp as ever, to promote his new album;



Still reasonably on track study-wise despite slacking a bit on the early starts lately, although since I'm progressing a lot of the work at work, so to speak, this isn't a showstopper right now. I trained my group of guinea pigs yesterday and it went well, so I now have 2-3 weeks of phone coaching ahead and a meeting with my supervisor in a fortnight to hash out my research methods. I have a general sense of where to probe in the final evaluation interviews, but I'll need to wrap it in some theory and big academic words. I have my heart set on epistemological.

Labels: 2010

... 59 to go. Just catching up with GP and tweaking my coaching materials for the week ahead. This week is mainly about me training the second experimental group while Graham hits the phones to get his coaching lined up for next week. I'm really looking forward to my session; I always exploit an air traffic control metaphor to talk about task management and this week I'll be adding a little extra visual sparkle with a movie trailer and a groovy piece of ATC simulator video.

Continuing the aviation theme, we saw a little piece of history yesterday as we stood on Alderley Edge during the weekend consitutional. In the bright winter sunshine, I spotted a Nimrod take off from Woodford Aerodrome in the distance and start doing circuits over the Cheshire plain, coming pretty low over our heads on the first couple of passes. Great sight. Woodford is a BAe production facility for the Nimrod MRA4 but it's closing in 2012; it was a bit poignant, like seeing the last Vulcan at Southport in the Autumn.

Labels: 2010

... 63 to go. Good return rate on the questionnaires today with the first training session. Eight out of nine brought it in and at the end of the session seven of them agreed to sign up for the coaching, too. Not bad at all. It helped that the session was delivered by our Graham, who's such a charismatic and popular guy in the classroom that it'd be difficult not to want more of him given the chance. Let's see how they are after a day with me next Wednesday; a proper Pepsi challenge, with Graham as the Real Thing.

As for early impressions, it's as I anticipated with few really specific training goals emerging across the group; a more typical wish is to 'improve skills' or 'learn more'. I suspect that this particular course - Excel Tips and Tricks - invites a 'suck it and see' attitude, but it'll nonetheless be interesting to see how it affects the coaching, and I'll be devoting tomorrow's trip down to London for the Learning Technologies Show to deciding the goal-setting approaches for Graham to employ over the next fortnight with them.

I must say that although it's been a mad few days of only just managing to stay ahead of the headlong rush of appointments and communications, it feels good to be developing something at work properly, i.e. taking the time to explore it, understand it and test it out. I started wanting to just get it done, but it's proving to be better than just a chore.

Labels: 2010

... 67 to go. It's been a hectic week pilotting and finalising my first questionnaire. Once that was done I had to then hit the phones on Friday to get the first participants on board with it for next week. It's a bit late in the day, creeping up rather suddenly in this compressed schedule. Managed to get 8 out of 10 promises, so let's see what they bring on Wednesday.

Also this week we had the latest take from the Vice-Chancellor on what lies ahead. He's realised the error of his ill-chosen Titanic metaphor and is instead talking in terms of a slope with varying gradients due to Lord Mandelson's HE cuts and election aftermath. My guess is 12-18 months to build a lifeboat.

On a cheerier note, massive news this week that Gil Scott-Heron is touring again to promote a new album. Along with most people, I didn't think I'd ever see him again after the drugs and prison problems of the last few years. Assuming he gets a visa - he was also banned from the UK for some narcotic misunderstandings in 1990 - he'll be here in March and I'll be waiting to greet him, grinning like a schoolkid.

Labels: 2010

... 71 to go. So I have my first play with live ammo today; a training room full of guinea pigs on whom I shall inflict questionnaire number one. So what's the plan? Basically, I'm planning to take several groups of university staff doing IT training courses, give follow-up phone coaching to half and see what difference it makes. Essentially it will therefore be a study into the effectiveness of distance coaching on transfer of training. As far as I know, there's only one existing, formal study that's looked at using coaching like this, but that was with groups and discussion boards. I'm going to be doing 1-1 phone coaching supported by a desktop sharing tool, so it's a form of eCoaching.

Part of the study is also going to be looking at whether pre- and post- training support from managers and colleagues makes a significant difference to the coaching so today's trial questionnaire will be all about that. Once today's session is done I'll be getting pretty quickly into doing the coaching - which I'm really looking forward to - and the trials proper starting next week. Two of the groups will be doing an Excel course delivered by one of my team, two will be doing 'Advanced Personal Productivity' delivered by yours truly. What could possibly go wrong...

Labels: 2010

... 73 to go. This was very much a weekend off the studying to do some nice things, catch up on some jobs and just have a bit of a rest. First off, there was some unfinished business from that dark, sunny day back in August. Revenge - in the mid-winter mud - was sweet;



We celebrated afterwards with the home-made sushi that Jo learnt to make at Samsi on Friday. Unfortunately for them, we were then so sushi-ed out that we repaid them by cancelling Sunday lunch there and going down the Curry Mile instead while Nina took the kids off to Dunham Massey - thanks, sis - to see the deer. Finally, after three days of celebratory birthday gourmandizing, the icing on the cake was actually going to see a film, 'Up in the Air' - George Clooney's latest - at the Cornerhouse. I won't link to any reviews for fear of an accidental spoiler, I'll just say it was excellent. Go see.

Labels: 2010

... 75 to go. Had my first meeting with my supervisor yesterday since the initial one a month ago. He's just back from Xmas in Australia and is looking suitably tanned and pissed off about the weather.

Anyway, we ran through the plan that I've been putting together these last few weeks and he thinks it's more or less OK. Phew! It means I can now lift my head out of the research and crack on with questionnaires and training and coaching and interviews, which will feel much more like proper forward motion, I'm sure. In fact, in my mind's eye it feels like the start of the Grand Prix where the 5 red lights have just gone out!

So next up I'll be knocking together a questionnaire over the weekend to trial with a bunch of guinea pigs that I'm training next Tuesday. Also over the weekend Jo and I will be going for a sushi splurge at New Samsi to celebrate her birthday. She's also heading down to their Spinningfields branch this afternoon for a sushi-making course we've organised, too.

Labels: 2010