Birthday reflections: Growth, balance and perspective

Year two of blogging and thirty-nine of living.  Through floods and fast growth, I am finding it is all a matter of perspective.

The year gone

The Queensland flood was the most distinctive event in the past 12 months, one that that resulted in our current rebuilding efforts.  We were very fortunate through the event to be able to stay in the basement of our friend’s place as Theresa rebuilt the house with the occasional assistance of volunteers. I do not take the label of flood victim, as we will come out stronger than before.

The My Pizza Personality project which was so top of mind this time last year has now cooled into the land of congealed ideas.  The research is still ticking along and it is likely that the case study will be published in a book on marketing environmental sustainability.  I have, however, stopped stalking the Twitterverse to solicit new participants.

My studies have expanded my views on organisational complexity, culture, effectiveness, leadership, self-regulation, and teams.  These concepts have helped my transition from Production Manager to General Manager in my company.  My interest in digital resulted in occasional observations on iPhone fart apps, Facebook memes, social media in a crisis and at work, profile pictures, and tweeted prayers.  While I find the digital landscape interesting and valuable for improving efficiency and effectiveness, managing a digital company ultimately comes down to the people.

The year ahead

This time last year, I faced the challenge of a Production Manager bridging the gap between executive strategic direction and operational necessities.  I have now relinquished that title to one who I am confident will perform better than I as I move into a General Management role. My emphasis is now on serving the studio floor during continued rapid growth.

The challenges of rapid growth to what will soon be 32 people has refined my focus to three areas of a sustainable structure, personalised performance management, and a more holistic approach to our product offering.  When I have space to reflect, I get excited about the opportunities available.  My company has a solid culture of passionate people working to achieve common interdependent goals.

We serve each other to help individuals and teams realise their full potential.  At the end of every project, the goal is that each person, both staff and client, should be a better person as a result of their participation.  It is an idealistic utopian dream, but somebody has to get it right.  It may as well be us.

Perspective

My other goal is to achieve this without burning myself out and fragmenting all I care about.  At a minimum, this involves reducing 2:00am mornings, cold dinners, and weekend bleeds.  My goal for this time next year is to reduce my hypochondria when reading about stress-related illness and refer to myself less frequently as a “middle-age cliché”.

My word at the moment is perspective.  Perspective is powerful, dictating whether a situation is a success or failure, whether a person is a friend or an enemy, and whether you will be happy or sad.  In my career I have managed two people in the same role, with one grateful for the opportunity and the other angry over what they do not have.

Gratitude goes hand in hand with perspective.  Mentally placing yourself in a worse position than the one you are in puts your current position in perspective.  Of course, the flip side of this approach is to always feel there could be something better, which results in resentment.

I am finding a path between the two positions, of having a strong vision of what life can be and a gratitude for what it is.  Somewhere in the middle lies a place of contentment, balanced areas of family, work, and personal activities.  I am grateful for this blog as a means to articulate this journey, and I am grateful for you the reader in coming along for the ride.  Thank you.