Wow! What a month and it’s gone in a flash.
I love September, it feels fresh and new and it’s a good time to think about what I want to achieve before Christmas.
This September started with a trip to Amsterdam with my niece. It was nice to take some time off after what had been quite a busy period and great to explore a new city with someone young and funny and chatty and just great company.
Work wise three things kept me busy:
- Refining the final output of a project I worked on at the start of the summer (read about that here). The project was fun but the final part did stretch my excel skills and I had to turn to google. It’s at times like these I miss having skilled colleagues around me who would show me what to do. But then, I think the things I learn stick when I’ve had to try harder to actually solve the problem myself.
- I’ve just started working on a project which will keep me busy for most of October. More on that next month but it’s a new sector for me with a fairly complicated customer base that’s taken me a while to get my head around but I’m stuck in now and looking forward to making progress.
- A client (one of my favourites) asked me if I would present some findings with them at a conference next month – scary stuff. So I’ve spent a fair bit of time with them preparing and practicing. Let’s hope the preparation pays off.
Outside of work, it’s been fun. I spend 3 days in Amsterdam (see above) including an unforgettable, hair-raising, sweat inducing trip on a pedalo.
I took a trip to the theatre courtesy of my friend Panikos to see Who Killed my Father at the Young Vic. I actually don’t have words to describe the impact it had on me.
I’ve also caught up with friends and family I haven’t seen for a while and those times remind me that in this crazy world the people who matter most stay constant: Amsterdam with Flo, Oxford with Jock, Rosa’s with Susan and Pizza (as always) with Mel.
Generally, I feel so lucky to have a steady stream of work coming in after 6 years and particularly in these challenging economic times. I’m always so grateful to my clients who continue to trust me and work with me.
