Photo by Hush Naidoo Jade Photography on Unsplash
This month has been hard. I have spent far too long on hospital wards with nothing but time on my hands. I am thankful the flexible working arrangements at HMRC allow me to pick and choose where I work. This month is has been in the Costa within the Gledhow wing of St. James Hospital.
What did I enjoy
The month started with a face to face event in Birmingham for the Chief Technology & Design Office (CT&DO) Extended Leadership Team (ELT). Being new to CT&DO and HMRC it was a valuable way to meet a range of my peers. It was good to see the gamut of CT&DO responsibilities in a single room.
Where opportunities for collaborations and closer working were already identified. It was encouraging to see what it was not just an echo chamber and that challenges acknowledged with a desire to keep improving.
After many introductions I also enjoyed starting regular catchups with the wider team. As it stands I have no direct reports yet, I do have dotted lined responsibilities for all practitioners. Speaking to Lead's with a focus over many projects. To juniors/fast streamers who are marking their first foray into the profession. It was enjoyable to again have the remit to not only help the delivery of services, but the people who are delivering them.
What was hard
Spending so much time in hospitals it was difficult for me to accept that it's ok to not be ok. For too much of the month I was trying to keep the balls in the air, or the plates spinning.
When I finally took some time off I crashed hard afterwards. Who knew hospitals were full of sick people. So on top of everything we have a viral infection running through the house. In a moment of levity I took too long to work out which of my many bottles of whisky paired best with honey and boiling water in my hot toddy.
What did I learn?
HMRC is big. When I thought I got the hang of it I looked around the corner and there was a whole new initiative, programme or team. Most uncovered new teams of designers. With new ways of working and new areas of HMRC who need support embedding user centred design.
What did I experiment with?
As I am still in fact finding mode, I am taking a lot of notes. Usually I have a running scratchpad. A stream of unconscious thoughts which I try and decipher at a later date.
Recently I have taking the approach of note taking in user research. (Here would be a good place to link off to a blog post I should put together on how I take notes). Lots of multi coloured post it notes, each meeting a different colour so its easier to track. I then try to collate everything into a running todo list.
I've also experimented with joining a teams call from my phone rather than a desk. It was not a flawless experience!
Photo by Jan Piatkowski on Unsplash
What do I need to take care of?
Me and those close to me. 12 years of freelancing has left me with the mentality that taking annual leave has always had a monetary value attached to it. I need to realise there are avenues which mean I can strike a better work life balance. Working from home means days are longer than they would be else while. I am often guilty of being engrossed in a task and not seeing the time, darker afternoons cause me to ask is it 3 o'clock or 9 o'clock! Going into the office once or twice a week give me a bit of a different routine on those days.
I am also learning the benefits of hydration, lots of water coupled with regular breaks away from my desk.... and the ability to turn off notifications on various devices!