Home again Home again - Memorial Day

Spent last week in Las Vegas for EMC World (another post in the works) and came home on a horrible red-eye.  I have done the red-eye lots of times with better than average success.  I am not one to sleep on planes, but rest and feel well enough to go on with my day.

Not this time.  After several sleep deprived nights and very early mornings, I was so overtired I could not sleep.  Plus I think all of the padding on my seat had been removed.  Felt like I was sitting on a leather covered plank of wood.  After a long delay getting started, I was delighted to be home.

Today I went back to my routine, early workout, some time in the garden, and the joy in my heart that it is a long weekend.

Thank you to all those who served or who have served to keep America free!

Art Work

One of the great joys of parenthood is kiddo artwork!  I have lots of treasured pieces of glitter encrusted construction paper, but this one was a "self portrait and a poem".

The beauty and innocence of children can really be found in their expressions.  I hope you enjoy these precious treasures.  Feel fee to share your own in the comments!

March Mud by JMG

My boots were getting muddy.  SPLAT SPLAT!

Birthday Party Season

When I was just out of college one of my friends got engaged.  It was so exciting.  My older sibling said "and so it starts".  I had no idea what she was talking about until I found myself spending a lot of time and money traveling from bridal showers, to baby showers and had the stress of 3 weddings on the same day!  Each event by itself was very unique and special, but on the whole the sheer volume of activites were a strain.  (Yes this is certainly a first world problem - too many fabulous friends and family).  I am blessed to have been a part of every single event.  Yet, I was delighted when the activities tapered off...

Now that my son is in "school" the kindergardeners birthday party wheel has started to spin.  So many wonderful friends that my son has made invite him to birthday parties.  It is much easier to prepare for a youngster's party than a wedding or a shower.  No one much cares what I am wearing and the highlight for the kids is cake and ice cream - how can you go wrong?

I know I am in the right place at the right time, because even though the calendar looks packed I look forward to each and every event, because hanging out with giggling kids is where it is at for me.  Thank you to all of you who have included us in your lives and celebrations and long live the Birthday Party Season!

Great interpretation of E M C!

Was treated to this suprise in my twitter feed yesterday.... thank you Gitanjali Laad Jain

E=MC² of Social Media

where,
     E = Energy of participants;
     M = Mass i.e. number of participants and their first degree connections;
     C = Communication i.e. online communication and collaboration of the participants

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Neither Network...nor Wiki...but Shared Experience is all that matters!!

While many companies craft creative employee engagement and communication strategies to retain and nurture their top talent, EMC, the world's largest computer storage provider, received a gift (“The Working Mother Experience”) from their own actively engaged and committed employees. 
It started as an idea from one single person, Natalie Corridan Gregg, to make women feel more appreciated at EMC and was built into this wonderful traditional-media (printed book) based 250 page culture document (built through shared experiences); showcasing about 100 personal and professional stories of working mothers in EMC.
  The document stands as a testimony to EMC’s commitment to its employees, speaks volumes about the quality of workforce, and serves as a vehicle to connect employees spread in 400 offices across the globe. All of this built by active participation of employees. It wasn’t a corporate marketing or HR initiative, but that of the employees, who collaborated to share the stories of their lives, the challenges they faced in making everything happen and above all share the fruit of success.   Natalie Corridan Gregg, the founder of the book, did not goose participation with coercion or use a top-down approach (Groundswell, pp228), instead she encouraged evangelists to recommend and induce participation. One by one, stories began to pour in the pool, the word began to spread, and Gregg compiled the most magnificent gift for EMC.


Li & Bernoff in their book, Groundswell, repeatedly remind us that groundswell is all about relationships and not about technologies. EMC’s Working Mother’s Experience Book did not use a social network, or intranet or wiki to collaborate but they focused on listening, talking, and energizing participants to collaborate genuine and true stories that affected their lives. The stories uncover the underlying traits of a successful EMC’er demonstrating a sense of urgency, results-driven performance, integrity, innovative problem-solving, teamwork, and adaptability both at home and work. The book was distributed to both internal and external audiences. The conversational nature of stories has resonated with working mothers across the board. It makes them feel empowered and connected with peers/colleagues across the globe. Customers, partners, professionals from other companies have bonded with the book as well, more so because it is a topic that affects an outfit of any size or shape.
  Authors’ Boris Groysberg and Michael Slind in their blog post and latest book Talk Inc., describe how leaders at EMC “enhanced organizational inclusion by promoting conversational inclusion.”

Reading

As I get older I realize that I do things differently.  Sometimes I pretend it is not true, but it is.  In my twenties I did not get very excited over new appliances like refridgerators, I did not worry about seeding the lawn, and  I definitely did not have a set time to wake up on Saturdays.  One thing is similar, the way I read.  I am not sure if I read more often or less often.  I can confidently say I have an actual (non-kids) book in my hands less often, but in the electronic age that is meaningless.

I read more children's books, obviously.  That said, I have always gravitated toward Non-fiction books.  I love to learn.  Some are too dry even for me, but for the most part I can skim and enjoy books on lots of subjects.   Lately I am reading a bit differently.  I have one book in my bag when I am out and about and one by my bedside.  Both are books on nutrition.  I find the guilt I feel about not eating the "right way" is somewhat nullified by the fact that the two books contradict each other on most points.  One point being clear - eat more fruits and veggies.....hmmm don't think I needed new books to tell me that...

Guess I will go eat an apple and enjoy the sunshine.  Happy Saturday everyone!