Drawing with my new tablet PC is lots of fun. Instead of being stuck in the basement or near a table large enough to hold a laptop and a regular tablet, I can draw pretty much anywhere – like the couch where Neko loves to nap.

There are plenty of drawing programs for tablets. Some mimic traditional drawing media: pencils, charcoal, even oil paint. Some let you use all sorts of effects. Others take a different approach to drawing, with lines and shapes that you can draw and edit. I like the latter more, because I can tweak my drawings until they look more like what I had in mind.

My favourite drawing program is Inkscape. Using it in full tablet mode isn’t as convenient as working on the Cintiq because I don’t have all the buttons I’m used to, but I’ve been working on my configuration to make it easier to draw. I use mouse gestures to switch between different tools so that I don’t have to click on the toolbox, and I’ve mapped one of the buttons on the tablet frame to “Delete”.

Growing up, I hadn’t really thought of myself as artistic. We’d fallen into the habit of labelling ourselves, I guess. My eldest sister and I were academically and technologically inclined. My middle sister was the one who was good at photography and drama and all that stuff. In high school, the split became even bigger as I compared myself with classmates who created beautiful landscapes and still-life drawings in art and drafting. Gadgets and presentations lured me back into drawing. I got a Nintendo DS to play games and draw on it, discovering along the way that drawing was a lot of fun. I sketched a presentation on it, and the overwhelming response to that told me I’d stumbled across something more fun than illustrating my presentations with impersonal stock photographs. I’m beginning to think of myself as someone who can draw–perhaps not amazingly well, but enough to make me and other people smile.

I have a feeling this will definitely be worth the money I set aside for it. =)

It’s the computer I thought it would be. And it understands my handwriting! So now l get to experiment with my workflow to figure out what works for me…

By golly, the future is actually here.

People often ask me how I find the time to write, blog, or give presentations, so I’ve put together these tips on how to turn sharing from something that takes up extra time to something that saves you time as you work.

Sharing is intimidating. You might think that you need to master blogs or wikis before you can make the most of Web 2.0 tools to help you share your knowledge and build your network. But even if you never post in public, you’ve got plenty of opportunities to make a bigger difference through sharing.

I’m not going to tell you to start a blog today. Here’s a six-step program to help you save time by making sharing part of the way you work, even if most of what you work with is confidential or lives in e-mail. Give it a try!

Step 1. Review your e-mail for information that you repeatedly send people. Do different people ask you the same questions? Are there links or files you find yourself always looking up and sending? Are there common problems you often solve? Save time by filing those messages in a "Reference" folder so that you can easily find them the next time someone asks that question or needs that file. Save even more time by rewriting your notes so that you can easily cut and paste them into new messages.

You can use your e-mail program to manage this information by saving the e-mails in a "Reference" folder that might be subdivided into more folders, or you can save the information in directories on your hard drive, encrypting it if necessary. The key change is to create a virtual filing cabinet and put useful information in it.

This virtual filing cabinet can save you a lot of time on your own work, too. I often find myself searching for my notes on how I solved a problem six months ago because I have to solve it again, and my notes save me a lot of time.

Step 2. When talking to people, listen for opportunities to take advantage of your reference information. Now that you’ve got an virtual filing cabinet of useful information, keep an ear open for ways you can use that information to help people more efficiently. When people ask you a question you’ve answered before, give them a quick answer and promise to e-mail them the rest of the details.

When you look for ways to reuse the information you already have, you’ll find plenty of opportunities to get a lot more benefit from the effort that you’ve already invested.

Step 3. Reach out. Now that you’ve saved time and helped more people by sharing the information in your virtual filing cabinet when they ask, you’ve got a better sense of which notes are very useful. Take a moment to review your files and think about who might benefit from learning from that information. Reach out to them, sending them a note about what you’ve learned and why it can save them time. It might lead to interesting conversations and good opportunities.

For example, let’s say you e-mailed one of your coworkers an answer to his problem. Think of other team members who might have run into the same problem, and send them a short note about it too. If you do this judiciously, people will feel grateful without feeling overwhelmed by e-mail.

Step 4. Prepare and take notes. Now you’re getting lots of return on the time you invested into organizing your existing information, and you’ve got an idea of what kinds of information help you and other people a lot. Proactively write down information that might be useful instead of waiting until someone asks you about it, because you might not remember all the relevant details by that time. In fact, take notes while you’re working instead of leaving it for the end. File those notes in your virtual filing cabinet as well, and share them with other people who might find this useful.

In addition to helping you save time in the future, writing about what you’re learning or doing can help you think more clearly, catch mistakes, and make better decisions.

Step 5. Look for ways to share your notes with more people. By now, you’ve probably developed a habit of looking for ways to take advantage of what you’re learning or doing: writing and filing your notes, retrieving your notes when people need them, and proactively reaching out. You can stop there and already save a lot of time–or you can learn about sharing your notes more widely, helping you build your network and increase your impact.

Proactively reaching out to people who might find your notes useful has probably helped you develop stronger working relationships with a small investment of time. However, this is limited by who you know, how much you know about what they’re working on, and the timing of the information. On the other hand, if you share some of your notes in public areas where people can search for or browse them, then you can help people you might not think of reaching out to, and they can find your information whenever they need it.

You don’t have to share all your information publicly. Review your virtual filing cabinet for information that can be shared with everyone or with a small group, and look for ways to share it with the appropriate access permissions. You can share different versions of documents, too.

For example, I share public information on my blog because blogs make it easy to publish quick notes, and search engines make it easy for people to find what they need even if I posted those notes several years ago. On the other hand, there are many notes that I post to internal access-controlled repositories. Sometimes, I’ll post a sanitized version publicly, and a more detailed version internally.

This is where you can get exponential return on your time investment. If people can find and benefit from your notes on their own, then you can reach many more people and create much more impact.

People may not find and use your information right away. Keep building that archive, though. You’ll be surprised by how useful people can find your work, and by the number of opportunities and relationships you build along the way.

Step 6. Review your organizational system and look for opportunities for relentless improvement.

You’ve collected useful information from your e-mails and conversations, organized that in your virtual filing cabinet, reached out to people, and shared some of your notes publicly. Congratulations! You’re probably getting your work done faster because you don’t waste time solving problems again. Your coworkers probably look to you for answers because you not only help them solve problems, you do so in a timely and detailed manner. And you might already have discovered how helpful your notes can be for others you wouldn’t have thought of contacting. What’s next?

Review your virtual filing cabinet. Can you organize it for faster access? Can you fill in missing topics? Can you identify and update obsolete information? Look for opportunities to improve your process, and you’ll save even more time and make a bigger impact.

Want to share your experiences? Need help? Please feel free to leave a comment!

Text: Speed-reading

People ask me how I can read so quickly. Here are some things that might help you read and learn faster.

1. Don’t slow yourself down. Do you read aloud? Do you imagine yourself reading aloud? Speech is so much slower than sight. See. In fact, don’t trace the words with your eyes. Jump around. Look at the important words. Skim. Take advantage of peripheral vision.

2. Take advantage of structure. Read tables of content, conclusions. A book is a nonlinear device. How to Read a Book (Adler and van Doren): this book is awesome.

3. Read. A lot. You’ll get lots of practice. You’ll be surprised by how much books repeat themselves or other books. And you’ll find yourself reading for those rare gems, the aha! moments that make reading all the rest worth it. Then people will ask you: How can you read so quickly?

The class was lots of fun. I enjoyed meeting other women who were interested in woodworking. Our two instructors were both great role models: passionate, experienced, and engaged. I’m looking forward to seeing the list of autumn classes at Lee Valley’s and learning more.

I’m happy with the toolbox I built. The sides aren’t perfectly matched and the wood has knots, but the toolbox holds together, and the little buttons that cover the sunken screws are so cute. =)

I really liked the drill press, the belt/orbital sander, and the table saw. I think our next major tool investment might be a portable table saw, if W- and I find one that we’re happy with. But we’ll buy that only if we get into serious carpentry, like building cabinets. The folding table I’ve got on my to-build list should be doable with the tools that we have.

One of my classmates is into sewing, gardening, and woodworking too. Yay! =) Maybe she’ll come to one of my tea parties? I’d love to connect with other crafters.

On Sunday, I invited Maira to come over and try batch-cooking. The kitchen at her sublet apartment is small and sparsely equipped. W- and I both enjoy cooking, and we have a decently-stocked kitchen. So Maira and I spent three hours cooking up a storm: lemon refrigerator cookies, baked chicken, and chicken with mushroom sauce. There was a lot of food. Maira took home a week or two of meals, and we stashed the rest in the chest freezer.

I’m glad I invited her to come and cook with me. It’s great to try new recipes and realize they’re not so scary, and company turns cooking into a conversation. If cooking batches works for her, then she can repeat the recipes or try new ones and manage her time more efficiently. (I spent many student days living off pans of lasagna I made for myself!) I also repotted some of my parsley for her. The large bunches of parsley in the supermarket made Maira feel bad about the potential waste, but growing parsley will let her harvest a little bit at a time.

After we dropped Maira off, we passed by Walmart to see if they had any sergers in stock. I’d like to get a serger to finish my edges more cleanly and do better rolled hems, but it’s hard to decide which one to buy. The Walmart at Dufferin Mall had two Singer 14CG74 sergers in stock. The Brother 1034D is highly recommended, but I haven’t found out where to buy it in Toronto. W- volunteered to help me do research and check out Craigslist, which is terrific because he’s really good at doing that kind of comparison shopping.

I offered to make him a green monster (vegetable smoothie), but I dropped the blender and the plastic shattered. It was the low-end blender I’d bought during my student days, so I wasn’t troubled by it. After some research, W- and I bought a KitchenAid blender from Home Outfitters. It turned out to be $50 cheaper to order the blender from FutureShop, so I’ll call Home Outfitters after the long weekend to find out if they’ll match the lower price.

As W- reminded me, a blender in hand might beat two in the mail. ;)

I’m starting to like these vegetable smoothies. They took some getting used to when we first made them, but the frozen strawberries and blueberries make them almost a treat, and we go through so much more spinach (and even kale!) than we do if we just have salad.

In other news: you know, this drawing thing is fun. I find it more fun than taking and posting pictures, even. Why haven’t I been doing this more often? Maybe because I’ve been writing about these abstract things that don’t suggest images, but that’s a good exercise for the imagination. Perhaps I can write these slice-of-life posts from time to time. I like playing with colour and ink when I draw on my computer… =)

Someday I want to make things as pretty and communicative as Mike Rohde’s sketchnotes, Erica Glasier’s blog posts, Franke James’ visual essays. I want to capture scenes like those in urban sketches.

I want to be able to see more clearly, imagine more vividly, and create more expressively.  Looking forward to making a habit of drawing. It’ll be fun!

(click for a bigger version)

The map is an index for the stories I want to remember and share, and I hope to flesh them out in time.

Introspection

Memory: When I was in grade school, my dad once asked me what I had done that afternoon. I tried to tell the story, but as I told it, I realized that I couldn’t remember the events clearly. I remembered things out of order, and there were pieces that didn’t make sense to me. When my parents tell this story, they often focus on how I used computer metaphors–”delete delete delete”. They might’ve thought that I was making things up. I didn’t think I was, but I couldn’t make sense of what I remembered. Were the parts that didn’t make sense figments from my imagination or were they were simply missing the in-between pieces that could connect them to the whole? What I remember from this story is the embarrassing unreliability of memory. Are other people’s memories clearer? I don’t know, but this early experience helped nudge me to write more things down, and to tell fewer stories verbally.

Story: Later on, I remember telling stories and being corrected by other people. I knew my memories were fuzzy, and I trusted it less after correction. It was only later that I realized that memory and perception and storytelling are all fuzzy, and maybe it wasn’t just me. Watching my dad and my sister exaggerate their stories for dramatic impact, watching my mom disagree with the occasional detail, I learned that storytelling could be flexible. I tried to keep true to what I remembered, though.

Books: I turned to writing whenever I needed to figure something out, drawing from the words and ideas I found in books. The books I read helped me recognize the situations I faced and think about alternatives. I found it to be easier to think on paper than in conversation. Face-to-face, my family’s strong personalities overwhelmed my thoughts. On paper, I could think more clearly.

Change: One time, for example, I felt upset when my dad ate food off my plate and drank from my glass in front of my friends. It didn’t seem like a big deal, but I felt uncomfortable regardless. If I were my sister, I’d probably have had a quick retort that jokingly asserted myself, and all would be resolved then and there without loss of face. I wasn’t like that. Instead, I shelved the feeling for later exploration. That evening, I explored it on paper, narrowing it down to being embarrassed by the way my dad took without asking. It would be better if he had asked, and best if he got himself another serving. Once I had understood the reasons why I felt bad, I could plan what might be changed and how to raise the topic. In this particular case, I didn’t have to start the conversation – my dad happened upon my notes, read them, and apologized. After that, he asked me before taking anything from my plate.

Kaizen: Perhaps this was how I learned that I need the space to think through things, that writing helps create that space, and that thinking through possible changes makes it easier for resolve a situation. I did a lot of this introspection when I was growing up. Looking back, I think it was my way to help people learn how to deal with me, just as I was learning how to deal with them. I listened to those odd quirks, those momentary reactions, and I followed them to find the roots. I enjoyed experimenting, trying different approaches and seeing if we could make life a little better.

For example, I realized that I came to dread being paged with, “Sacha, come to our room, we want to talk to you,” particularly when my dad sounded grumpy, as he often did. Although most of the time I wasn’t actually in trouble and my parents just wanted some family time, it was hard to deal with that instinctive oh-no. Having pinpointed this distress, I told my parents about it, and we agreed to announce it as ice cream time instead. (Naturally, with actual ice cream, to sweeten the deal.)

See? Pavlovian psychology can be useful in real life. Not only that, but ice cream – both the treat and the sound of the words – go along way towards diffusing tension. It cools and slows you down, and the words–well, try saying “ice cream”. It’s like “cheese” – it encourages you to smile.

Yes, I thought about these things growing up. I blame my mom’s books on communication and relationships. :) They showed me that there’s more than one way to connect, and consciously looking at how we connect can help us shift patterns.

Also, I remembered my mom’s story about the naming of “Kodak” – choosing the kuh sound, using it at the beginning and end… I learned that the subtleties of language and behaviour influence us a great deal.

I thought a lot about these kinds of things growing up. Relentless improvement, that was it. Little tweaks, experiments that could make life better.

My paper notes weren’t really private. I didn’t bother developing a code, although in retrospect, I wish I did — perhaps I would have written more, and I might’ve gotten good at mentally decoding something along the way. Perhaps this lack of trusted secrecy that’s what made the shift to public blogging easier for me.

Research notebooks: In high school, we learned about how inventors kept research notebooks to document their progress and defend their patterns. I thought that was interesting. I tried keeping continuous notes, but I never managed to keep everything in a single notebook. I used the idea when I got my first laptop, though. I started taking notes on that, and it worked out well.

Blogging: When I got into open source development with the Emacs Planner, I used the same tool to share my notes. I wrote about what I wanted to do. I wrote about why, then how, then so what. It was an unexpected thrill to get comments from strangers around the world.
I started writing about other things. Typing class notes was a way for me to keep myself awake and paying attention. Writing about ideas and thoughts helped me explore.

In my own space, I grew to trust paper again – loose sheets that could be slipped into the recycling bin or shredded, or thoughts interleaved with mundane notes in my sketchbook. I went digital, too, sharing more of these thoughts online in both words and drawings.

I asked more questions and shared more of what I learned. The more I learned, the more I could learn about life.

Conflict resolution: Introspection through writing and drawing has become an invaluable tool for puzzling through situations and figuring out how to move forward. When W- hinted at his interest, I mindmapped my thoughts and feelings on paper before responding to him on paper. When my family expressed their strong disapproval and there was a lot of strain, I wrote and drew to understand what I felt. Whenever I needed to consider my options or get a handle on what I could do, I turned to paper, my computer, or my drawing tablet.

I like hearing people’s stories and learning from even more people’s experiences through blogs and books. I still talk to people sometimes in order to sort things out, but thinking things through on my own helps me figure out what it is I need to understand, and how I feel about all the input I receive.

Yes, I know, I said I wasn’t going to overthink this career thing. During a bike ride to work, I thought it might be a good idea to graph the different things I’m considering in the medium/long-term, how they relate to my comfort zone, and what kind of growth I see ahead.

Development: I understand this path the most. I have a deep background in it, I know I love doing it, I can list some things I want to learn, and I’m already in a good position to work on projects like that. This path is mainly limited by the movement of development to lower-cost areas, but I have a lot of role models who are IT architects or senior developers, so I can imagine what growth looks like.

Consulting: I’ve done a bit of consulting in the past, and I can continue to develop industry knowledge and learn more about frameworks. I can find opportunities to do this, although it’s not as easy as finding development opportunities.

My current role in Innovation Discovery: I’ve gotten the hang of the routine things I need to do, and push outside my comfort zone by creating new tools and resources to help us work. It doesn’t feel as deep in terms of growth as the other paths do, though.

Supporting and leading workshops might be a good thing to grow into. It’s a relatively big jump from where I am and I may need to have a lot more experience (people who do this are several pay-levels above me!). It’s a subset of consulting. It will give me lighter cross-industry knowledge instead of the deeper industry knowledge that comes from extended engagements.

Communications: I know a little about communications, and I enjoy writing and presenting. I don’t know enough about full-time communications work to get a good sense of whether it would be a good fit, though.

Sales: I don’t have any sales experience. It’s a great life and business skill, though, so I’d love to explore it and learn more about client needs, our offerings, and how to match-make the two. What would I bring to the table? I’m good at finding resources/experts.

Management: I don’t have any management experience, although my experiments with virtual assistance helped me learn about delegation. I don’t know yet whether I’d like this a lot or not. One way to find out is to grow in development until I can become a project manager, and then use that project management experience to figure out if I like contributing primarily through a team (instead of as an individual contributor).

It’s good to have a Plan B, C, D, etc. In terms of flexibility and transferable skills, development, consulting, and sales are great. Communications and management are transferable, but more dependent on the organization. My current role is much more IBM-specific than the others, and the complex parts of workshop leading are also IBM-specific, although the facilitation skills are transferable.

I need to learn more about the other paths to see what they look like and what the opportunities are. It’s good to explore different areas, because that will help me bring the different parts together later on.

I started sketching my current hobbies to get a sense of how woodworking might fit in, and how it interacts with my other interests. I wanted to figure out if I could explore that interest enough to reach the point of being able to comfortably do it. In particular, woodworking tends to require blocks of unstructured time, which means it competes with sewing and cooking for those precious weekend blocks.

I got interested in woodworking  because of gardening, and there are a number of items we can build to make gardening easier. Now that we’ve set the garden up, it doesn’t take that much more time: ten minutes each day, and maybe an hour during weekends to turn the compost and take care of additional tasks.

Woodworking conflicts with cooking, though, because we use the kitchen and there’s no point in cooking when sawdust is floating around. That’s okay. We’re at a “good enough” level in cooking, and batch-cooking lets us free up weekends.

Drawing helps a lot with woodworking, and woodworking helps me develop spatial intelligence for better drawing.

Looking at my other hobbies, you can see that writing, drawing, and presentations all feed each other. I’m not making as good a use of photography as I could, so that’s something to develop. All the hobbies that I actively work on are well-connected. In contrast, something like music doesn’t connect well with my other interests, so I rarely end up practising on the piano.

Picking hobbies that fit together means that you get more value for the time and energy you put in. The more you develop skills in one area, the more effectively you can do connected areas.

Another related post: How to do a lot

Dear 8-year-old Sacha,

You might not believe me, but your interest in computers will lead to making lots of good friends. So go ahead, enjoy it, and don’t mind the people who tease you about being a geek. When you grow up, this will be a very good thing.

I don’t know which experiences I’d want to steer you towards or away from. Even the tough decisions and seeming mistakes turn out to be all right. The boy whose heart you’ll break in second year high school will turn out to be a good friend later on. The writer you’ll have a crush on (although you’ll eventually find conversation awkward because you aren’t immersed enough in fiction) will end up telling you about a scholarship that will take you halfway around the world. The big fight you have with a friend at school will make it easier to leave for Japan, where you’ll meet the research supervisor who’ll convince the department to accept your application. Things work out.

There are a few minor things you might do differently, but don’t worry, life works out to be pretty awesome anyway. These suggestions will probably make life better without messing up the space-time continuum too much:

• People will tease you for reading your pocket dictionary and for using unusual words. That’s okay. Later in life, you will meet someone who browsed through dictionaries too, and you will get to make all sorts of obscure puns.
• Get into open source earlier. Not only will you learn a lot and meet many interesting people, you’ll get nudged into writing and presenting.
• If you go to a high school where everyone’s talented, don’t let people’s skills in drawing, writing, acting, or other things intimidate you from trying.
• Remember that people are human and have to sort out their own issues. Get better at figuring out what’s really you and what are issues other people are projecting onto you, what you want and whether that’s different from what other people want you to want, and who you are versus who other people think you are.
• People pass in and out of your life. You pass in and out of people’s lives. This is okay.
• In university, convince your teachers to put you in the regular English class instead of the merit English class. All the other computer science students will be in the regular classes. They’ll be bonding on food trips while you and a dozen other people sit in a circle in a classroom, discussing the irony in the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.
• If you end up in that English class anyway, try to enjoy it, and don’t let it convince you that writing is boring. School essays and book reports may be a pain, but you can write for fun. Keep your writing on your computer, though. It’s easier to organize (and protect), and you’ll thank me in university. (Say hi to your teachers for me – they were great, even if you weren’t the best of students at the time.)
• People like your sisters will try to convince you that you’re boring. You’re not. You’re just different. Take a notebook along on those family trips, and write or draw while they surf.
• Get into the university dorm earlier. Yes, you live in Metro Manila and there’s a long waiting list, but the network team will bump you up in priority thanks to your tech skills. You will learn a lot, and you’ll have lots of fun.
• Future paperwork will require a list of trips you’ve made. It may help to keep good records when you travel, although they’ll let you submit a partial list anyway.
• You will have to memorize things at some point, and developing that skill early will help you in calculus and chemistry. Make it more fun by turning it into a game. Flashcards are good.
• Practice being organized. Fold-back clips can help you keep those endless photocopies tidy. Multi-colour ballpens are handy.
• Go ahead and wear your glasses during presentations. (Yes, you will end up giving lots of presentations.) Contact lenses are a pain, and you can make a connection even with glasses on.
• Pay more attention in sewing and shop class. While most of your classmates may never own a sewing machine or pick up a drill again, you will. And you’ll enjoy it, so don’t be embarrassed about starting. Ask or save up for your own sewing machine if you need to. You might as well start early so that you can learn how to make cool things. And while you’re at it, build on that interest in gardening and take advantage of the space and the sun that you have.

Stick up for yourself, learn and share as much as you can, and enjoy. Life is going to be awesome.

Love,
26-year-old Sacha

To entertain cats and people alike, we’d fed the squirrels throughout winter. Now we were paying for it with the consequences of population explosion: ravaged seedling beds, munched-on sprouts, and dug-up and discarded onion bulbs.

The stench of bloodmeal didn’t stop the marauding rodents from plundering our vegetable patches. We didn’t want to use hot pepper flakes and other painful irritants. We needed a plan.

We stapled chicken wire on our raised beds, which kept the scallions and other bulbs safe for the moment. When the strawberry plants grew tall enough to poke white and pink flowers through the mesh, we knew we needed something bigger.

I was about to experiment with circles of chicken wire held together with duct tape and string. But W- had an engineering decree, and he wasn’t afraid to use it.

After days of discussing diagrams on scratch paper, we decided to build a semi-permanent frame. We picked up spruce and hardware from Home Depot, and then set to work. W- taught me how to use a circular saw to cut the lumber. I told him that it felt a lot like sewing: marking my seams and following the lines. We sanded, measured, marked, leveled, measured, and fastened. We finished the frame just as the sky darkened.

This is what it will probably look like:

  (… minus the text, of course, and liberally covered with chicken wire.)

We’ve finished the vertical and horizontal supports, and we’ll work on the chicken-wire doors this week. I’m looking forward to it.

I’m making my peace with subjects I detested in school. Now that sewing and cooking have become enjoyable hobbies, I’ve set my sights on shop class and drafting.

Working on shelves and other small projects in high school shop/tech class, I had felt awkward and clumsy. I struggled to wrap my mind around the spatial puzzles of carpentry. The classroom was full of sweat and sawdust, and the lab coats we wore did nothing for either.

Drafting classes in fourth year were more refined, but not more enjoyable. My classmates drew neat lines that intersected at just the right places. My papers were full of smudges, distortions, and impossibilities.

Now, without the pressure of a classroom and with more developed spatial skills (thank you, sewing and drawing), I can find these long-forsaken subjects relaxing, even enjoyable. Working with wood, I found myself thinking of other things I’d like to build. Drawing the structure, I though

Helps to have the right tools, too. Axonometric grids in Inkscape for drawing isometric images? Yes! So much easier than erasing and redrawing segments.

It’s great to challenge my memories. I’m learning that sometimes things are better learned the second time around. It’s great to know it wasn’t me, it was then. Who knows? I may yet revisit the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and learn how to look at fiction and poetry with a critical eye.

But first, I have some squirrels to chase off the lawn.

From last week’s plans:

Work

• [X] Discuss virtual leadership
• [X] Finalize preparations for Idea Lab
• [-] Revise my “Remote Presentations That Rock”
• [X] Flesh out more parts of the wiki
• [X] Follow up on expertise location pilot – export lists of experts
• [X] Track Idea Lab interest
• [-] Update invitation template
• Also: Listened to Debbie Landers talk about being a remote executive (“All executives are remote, in a way”)
• Chatted with Laurie Friedman about leadership
• Blogged about facilitation tips
• Drafted newsletter
• Set up training community
• Posted visual essay on smarter leaders
• Updated and reorganized part of the wiki
• Talked to extended team members
• Helped Camille Nichols track down resources
• Sent list of experts for expertise location pilot

Relationships

• [X] Meet with lawyer regarding the marriage contract
• [-] Add another freezable meal to our repertoire (chicken-based?)
• [X] Plant more herbs in the back box
• Also: Attended Tania’s tea party
• Built garden box frame with W-. Lots of work and lots of fun.
• Planted asparagus, whee! Also picked up more strawberries and a cherry tomato plant
• Turned the compost
• Made large batch of spaghetti sauce
• Made cream puffs
• Attended J-’s school musical (Dear Edwina) – that was fun! Why don’t we have beginners’ musicals that grownups can sing in? =)
• Scanned paperwork for my mom

Life

• [-] Get started on skirts
• [-] Post five drawings
• [X] Figure out how to blog or journal small, quick notes
• Also: Drew more cats
• Planned how to simplify life, remember better, and fight clutter

Plans for next week:

Work

• [  ] TOP: Facilitate Idea Lab and summarize results
• [  ] Revise “Remote Presentations That Rock”
• [  ] Follow up on expertise location pilot
• [  ] Reflect on IBMers at their best – map competencies to how I currently practice them and how I want to grow
• [  ] Post more thoughts on career growth

Relationships

• [  ] Work on garden frame
• [  ] Send some more information that my mom needs for her visa application
• [  ] Plant the rest of the herbs
• [  ] Send additional information to lawyer

Life

• [  ] Spring cleaning: wardrobe, bedside table, living room, etc.
• [  ] More organization: try belt pouch + bag system

Pandesal. Brown paper bags of crunchy-yet-soft buns at breakfast and merienda, often accompanied by hot chocolate—or chocolate porridge, if I was really lucky.

If there is a type of bread in my heart, it is this. Not white bread or whole wheat or rye or flax. Not the focaccia we dipped into balsamic vinegar and olive oil at the Italian restaurant my family often went to. Not the banana breads or cornbreads W- and I have made.

Pan de sal. Bread of salt. 

Perhaps Laura Esquivel was on to something in Like Water for Chocolate. Food really is a language powerful beyond words.

I made pandesal for the first time. Fresh from the oven, they tasted of home.

I offered W- a piece. He had pandesal during our trips to the Philippines. I was glad he could relate to my memories.

There are places that sell pandesal in Toronto. I’ve never been to them. It’s different. Going out of my way to buy Filipino food? That’s something I might do if I get really homesick. Learning how to make the food of my memories? That fits. That helps me grow.

Now I can have pandesal any time I want. =) When we finish the 14 rolls I stashed in the freezer, I’m going to try this other recipe.

Picture by W-

Presentations are probably the clearest time I present a “brand” or a slice of myself, because I focus on a single topic and I write a bio that highlights relevant aspects. At work, on my blog, and in life, I can bring out more complexity.

I started thinking about this when someone asked me how one makes the shift to talking about identity when people ask about their brand. When I thought about the question, I realized people don’t really ask me about my “brand”, they just figure it out.

People find happiness and energy remarkable. One of the tags people added to my profile at work is “howcomeshesalwayscheerful”. <laugh> Ditto with energy – people are surprised by that. It seems like being passionate about your work is a rare thing. I’m going to work and live as if these things aren’t rare, assuming instead that everyone can be happy and energized and passionate about what they do. =)

Happiness, energy, and passion don’t fit neatly into the idea of consciously building personal brand. Happiness doesn’t work well when you’re being happy just because you’re the happy person. You don’t say, “Hey, happiness would be a good brand for me, so I’m going to be happy.” You just are. You can focus on the bright side of life, but that’s more about you and less about what you want people to think of you. And happiness doesn’t mean that you need to hide the sad parts of your life, because those challenges help you grow too.

The cross-over between different parts of my life (such as Emacs people sharing their insights into my hobbies) is totally awesome, which is why I like sharing the complexities of who I am instead of boxing myself in with a brand.

I like working this way. I like being myself, seeing what people find valuable, and then building on those strengths so that I can use them to help more people. Instead of thinking of this as one-way, like personal branding is often seen, I think of the conversational development of identity. It doesn’t spring full-formed from my solitary thoughts, like the way someone might deliberately develop personal branding. It emerges as I interact with people and the world, and as I reflect on what I’ve learned.

Thanks to @saradelekta for prompting me to think about this, and to Bernie Michalik for the comparison between identities and personal brands!

When I went to the UK for a client workshop in Reading, my schedule didn’t permit much sightseeing. I had an evening free, though, so I walked through the shop-lined streets and the local malls.

Stores tell interesting stories about a place. What struck me most about the shops in Reading was that hats and fascinators were more popular than they were in Toronto, and much more than in Manila. Feathered combs and flowered headbands hung in racks. Suits were displayed with color-coordinated hats. Although I hadn’t seen anyone wearing a fascinator (perhaps this was saved for cocktail receptions, weddings, and other events), it tickled me pink that millinery was alive and well.

Stores also have a way of telling people what “normal” is. As in Toronto, Reading’s stores stocked clothes with cool spring colours that go well with paler skin. With my brown skin and warm tones, it’s hard for me to find anything that makes me feel comfortable – hence the preponderance of black and white in my closet. Size is often an issue, too. It’s hard to find petite clothes in small sizes. It’s hard to find wide office-ready shoes with low heels (or none at all). Shopping often frustrates me and makes me feel alien.

I’ll just have to learn how to make things myself, and stock up on clothes whenever I’m in Asia. =)

In the meantime, I can explore the local quirks: fascinators in the UK, racks of winterwear in Toronto, and other interesting things. (I didn’t actually buy a fascinator, as my social calendar typically does not involve many opportunities to wear one, but I had fun browsing!)

Things I’m planning to talk about during the virtual leadership session tomorrow:

Backup URL: http://sachachua.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/smarterleaders1.jpg

At an external networking event a few years ago, I talked to an up-and-coming MBA grad who told me about the rotational program he was in. He was scheduled to spend one year in one department, one year in another, and so on. I envied how he was being groomed.

Deliberately moving through different departments helps you build a wide base of experience and a diverse network. The formality of the program means that the frequent job shifts won’t be taken against you, as they might in an organization that values depth and specialization. Management development programs like that are essential for cultivating people with a broad understanding of the organization. Without sponsors or organizational backing, most people would find it difficult to shift from one part of the organization to the other.

Rotational programs and other leadership development initiatives tend to be offered only to high-potential people, where high potential is not only based on performance, but also velocity. When I was starting at IBM, my eldest sister advised me to find the fast track, get on it, and stay on it. While not entirely following her advice—I’d pick coaching people on collaboration over working tons of overtime on well-understood projects, even though the first doesn’t show up on my metrics and the second doesn’t—I’ve also nudged my manager about some of the development programs I’ve seen. I’ve volunteered for things like the Technical Leadership Exchange and the Take Two women’s leadership program. I read as much as I can, as widely as I can. I learn from people all over IBM.

Envy is a surprisingly useful driver as long as you don’t let it consume you. This reminds me of the invitation-only web development course I heard about when I was in high school. I wasn’t invited—me! and I’d done well in our programming competitions!—so I talked my way into it. It reminds me of how I envied the courses that students in other universities got to take, so I read through the online course materials and learned whatever I could on my own.

It’s not about the world being unfair, and it’s not about other people receiving opportunities that you have to make for yourself. It’s about looking around and saying, “Hey, that’s a great idea. How can I borrow part of that idea and make something for myself?”

Back to rotational programs. I don’t know what fields need to be set in my record for me to show up on HR’s radar (in a good way), but I’m not going to worry about that. I don’t have to wait for permission to learn as much as I can from other parts of this huge organization. I probably have the perfect starting point, actually. During my graduate studies, I learned about research. In Global Business Services, I’ve learned about development and consulting. In my Innovation Discovery engagements, I’m learning about marketing and sales. From our clients and experts, I learn about strategy, operations and finance. I help people in communications and learning and IT. I can take free online courses in almost any area. I don’t have the depth that comes from everyday delivery, responsibilities, and war stories, but I’m learning from people who do.

This matters because there’s tremendous value in being able to break down silos and work across organizational boundaries. The more we can reach out and tap the talent throughout IBM and the world, the more powerfully we can work. If we can learn from different parts of the organization without a formal rotational program, then that broader understanding becomes available to anyone who wants it. If we can influence and inspire without formal authority, then other people can learn emergent leadership too. If we can figure out this different way of working, we can share it with other organizations and influence the world.

I don’t have an executive sponsor or an HR program shaping my career path, but I have many mentors and role models, including some who take a chance on me and give me opportunities beyond my level. That’s enough to make a difference. The limiting factor here isn’t training. It’s my time and energy. There’s so much more to learn.

If you’re waiting for training—or an organizational blessing—look around and see what you can do with what you have. You don’t need a rotational program or a classroom course. Think about what’s really limiting you, and find out what you can do about it.

Thanks to David Ing for nudging me to think about this!

It amazes me that people find my work and my life inspiring. It’s an honour to be able to share what I’m learning and to learn from how people build on it! I can’t wait to see what adventures we’ll share.

Sometimes I feel the twinges of the imposter syndrome. Sometimes I worry about things going to my head. But I want to be inspiring, the way my mom and dad are inspiring, the way that my role models are inspiring. Sometimes I suspect I’m an experiment in happiness. =) I want to be the person whose example reassures people that good things are possible.

If we’re creating this gift in the space between us (between us, because it’s too big to be just me), what will it be for?

What do I hope to inspire people to do and be?

I want to inspire people to be happy and passionate and alive. I want to show that work can be an expression of love, that happiness can survive in this world, and that good things do happen to good people. I want people to know that happiness isn’t something you strive for or buy, it’s something you are.

I want to inspire people to share. If people can learn from what I’ve shared of the things I’ve learned in these few years, imagine what people might learn from others (and from themselves!).

I want to inspire people to play to their strengths. Many introverted people feel limited by their personality, when it can be a real strength. Same goes for lots of other factors that we often mistake as weaknesses.

I want to inspire people to practice relentless improvement in a kind and loving how-can-we-make-things-better way (as opposed to here-are-all-the-ways-you-suck).

I want to inspire people to connect and collaborate to make bigger things happen, and to figure out their own big picture if they need to. You don’t need a special title in order to be a leader.

I also want to inspire people to read manuals, save up, spend time and energy and money on what matters, smile more, let go, and a million other things, but we’ll figure that out. ;)

It’s a big thing, too big for my small hands. But I have  a world to learn from, many conspirators, and (I hope) decades to explore.

I don’t want to be a star, shining but remote. I want to be a lens that helps bring out the light and colour of people around me.

How can we grow towards that?

I want to learn how to draw well. I want to be able to mix imagination and reality like on Urban Sketchers. It looks like it will be fun, and it might even be useful. =)

One of my indulgences is hosting tea parties. I love bringing friends together for conversation. There’s something about an unhurried afternoon when people can come and go as they please, enjoy some snacks and as much conversation as they’d like, and share their lives.

After lots of experimentation, I’ve settled into a good routine. The week before, I prepare tarts, biscuits, muffins, scones, or other delectables that I can stash in the fridge or freezer. I think about dietary restrictions and make sure there’s something for everyone. When guests come (or a little before), I get small portions ready.

Even if no one makes it (life happens!), I’ll have a freezer of goodies to see us at least through the next week. Yay!

People always come. Most of the time, lots of people do. We crowd around the kitchen table, unwrap the favourites that people have brought, and share stories and tips and questions and advice.

There’s something about these low-expectation whoever-shows-up get-togethers that feels wonderful. When I read about the extended family dinners Trent wrote about on the Simple Dollar, I thought, “Yes, that’s what I do, except tea works better for me than dinner.” Less juggling of dishes, less competition from other weekend priorities, less need to get everyone together at a specific time.

I’m planning to host another tea party near the end of the month, or perhaps mid-May. I’ll buy a few more saucers so that I’m not always scrambling to find a clean one for later visitors. It’s a good time for lemonade and lemon curd squares. (W- makes awesome lemon curd squares with shredded coconut.) Pies and tarts are starting to give way to fresh fruit and lighter breads (perhaps some pandesal?), but maybe I can learn how to make pecan tarts. Soon it will be barbecue season, which opens up even more possibilities.

If you haven’t hosted a tea party or other get-together yet, try it out. It’s fun, surprisingly frugal, and a great way to connect.