How cruel is that? I return, bleary-eyed, jet-lagged, but having survived many interesting food experiences (so what does the polite visitor do when the aboriginal hosts offer a steaming cup of coca-leaf tea? ..or mystery meat kebabs?)
I was congratulating myself for my amazing ability to keep up with my colleagues, do the late-night dinners, the excruciatingly early mornings (and remember, it takes me twice as long to do the personal grooming and getting ready stuff as the non-wheeled folk). I was Ms. get-up-and-go-because-we-can-sleep-when-we-get-home. Ah hubris! Never mock the travel gods.
Arrived home in the morning. Dear hubby prepared a lovely dinner - - his specialty - - roast chicken-- for me. I slept like a baby,for 10 hours. But when I awoke the next day, the tummy was not so happy, and things went downhill from there. And stayed that way for the next 2 days. No fever. No aches. No chills. Just the sad reality of a bad case of food poisoning.
But I am better. And I am back. And am so delighted at the work of my team in my absence. It really paid off to truly disconnect. I resisted the urge to call in, and my staff rallied beautifully. Things got done! I love feeling dispensable. I don't feel useless or that I have no added value, but it is very reassuring to know that you have good people and that the place will indeed survive without you!
I am observing myself in my environment, and I am so hoping that some of what I learned over the last 3 weeks will stick. The whole point is to be a better leader. Will I be?
So now it is my turn to ask you out there...what do you want to know more about? How would you like me to continue this blog? Would you like more detail about the trip? Do you have questions that you want to discuss about leadership? Do you want to learn more about the accessibility angle?
I would love to make this more interactive, so let me know, and please, let's continue!
hi Yazmine, I for one really enjoyed your blogs and appreciated your diligence in setting them up week after week. It's a great way to stay connected, share stories and make people smile/more aware of what it takes to do what you do! What I like is the combination of a little personal sharing (it makes you real!), professional insights, and struggles/successes as a leader. What would be interesting is to follow your thoughts as you reintegrate...did you learn something you used back at the office, or something that made you more reflective, self-aware and how? What is your wish for other public servants as they travel on their leadership journey. Accessibility is really important --make us aware. Perhaps some of the colleagues you travelled with would do a guest blog, or share some stories. I say keep going and doing what comes natural. Whenever you say to yourself "I have to blog that..." Do it. Even if you don't get lots of traffic at first, it will come in response to your committment. It is really good to have you back!
ReplyDeleteYazmine, I've really enjoyed following your trip. It's been interesting learning more about the work side of you, and I'm always interested in how you manage accessibility issues, but I'm a little biased. Glad you survived your travels.
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