books
Finished reading: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett 📚
A really engaging read. Left me wanting to seek out Bennett’s debut novel, The Mothers.
Finished reading: Treacle Walker by Alan Garner 📚
Best book I’ve read in a while. Raced through it in just a couple of sittings (which is rare for me) — I didn’t want to put it down.
Finished reading: I Didn’t Do The Thing Today by Madeleine Dore 📚
I enjoyed reading this and frequently found myself nodding along. My copy is covered in sticky notes and I’m looking forward to going back to review the highlights.
Finished reading: The End of Eddy by Edouard Louis 📚
Is it a novel? Is it autobiography? Does it matter? Either way I didn’t really manage to get into it and have to admit to skimming it towards the end.
Finished reading: The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex 📚
Should have gone with my gut on this one and stopped reading before I’d committed too much to it. Meh 🤷🏼
Currently reading: The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex 📚
Always a little apprehensive when starting a book bought as a gift. Let’s see how this goes.
Finished reading: The Locals by Jonathan Dee 📚
Found this massively underwhelming, if not irritating. Dee seemed to start lots of plot lines and then just let them trail off. About two thirds through I asked my wife if anything happened before the end, she said yes… it did not.
Finished reading: A Thousand Moons by Sebastian Barry 📚
Another gem. I don’t know any other author who weaves poetry into the narrative like Barry does.
Weeknote 19/22
Late again but I’m happy with my reasons… Last week I attended a 2-day conference (Friday/Saturday). It was my first in person experience for around 3 years and I’ve needed a faffing day and a full day off to recover. So I’m just starting my working week proper today (Wednesday).
☎️ Had a catch up call (refreshingly over the phone, not video) with a colleague about sponsorship and bursaries to support making coaching accessible to everyone who wants it not just those who can pay.
🛋️ Visited a new co-working space for a tour to see if it could work for me. I’m interested in how they’re approaching building a community rather than just renting space… but I’m not so sure about the physical environment of the office itself. I’ll need to trial it to know for sure.
💡 Met with another freelancers to share our Notion setups and swap ideas. Got some tweaks to make to my ‘Control Deck’ and weekly overview template.
💻 Hosted my usual mid-week co-working session for the accountability group.
✍️ Other work this week consisted of a lot of writing, including a longer than usual blog post about my new group coaching programme and the article edition of my fortnightly newsletter.
📚 Finished reading Spring Cannot Be Cancelled. It’s had a huge impact on me and I keep referring to it in conversation. Need to write-up those thoughts before they leave me!
🩳 Major breakthrough in mindset around wearing shorts to ‘professional’ events. I wear shorts fairly constantly for around 8 months of the year (usually between the clocks changing) but have had a mental block around wearing them to meetings and events. I realised this week that if I were a person who wears skirts it would never cross my mind not to wear one on these occasions, so why worry about rocking up in shorts?!
☕ Attended the International Association of Facilitators (England & Wales branch) conference in Birmingham; a hybrid conference with options to join in person or via Zoom. Attendance was roughly 50/50. What I really valued from the in person side was those chance conversations over coffee. It was also great to be off screen for two full days — I didn’t even take any notes! I’m still processing everything that happened and a full write-up is coming soon. And yes, I did wear shorts!
🌳 Stayed with friends while at the conference and enjoyed the down time. Also caught up with other friends locally on the Sunday for a walk in the woods before traveling home.
⚽ Played my second free hit (and final chip) in the penultimate gameweek of Fantasy Premier League. It could be worse, it could be better. And there’s still half the matches to be played. But let’s just say I should have trusted my gut!
Currently reading: I Didn’t Do The Thing Today by Madeleine Dore 📚
You’ll know on the first page if this book is for you. Summary: I don’t have the answers, there’s no one way to do things, it’s about experimenting and finding what works for you. Bingo!
Currently reading: A Thousand Moons by Sebastian Barry 📚
Back to fiction today with one of my favourite authors.
The more I read of Spring Cannot Be Cancelled: David Hockney in Normandy, the more I want to spend my time just looking at the trees in the park outside my back door 📚
Finished reading: Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead 📚
Enjoyed this adventure yarn and getting to know Marian Graves. Wasn’t sure about the need for the modern plot, but it made itself known in the end.
Finished reading: Do Pause by Robert Poynton 📚
This book has prompted so many questions for me to explore around how I create and use pauses in my life and work. Highly recommend.
Finished reading: Saltwater: Winner of the Portico Prize by Jessica Andrews 📚
An absolutely fantastic first novel. Really engaging with a distinctive style and structure.
Currently reading: The Books of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin 📚
Reached the halfway point today by finishing The Farthest Shore. The more I read, the more I wonder why I’ve never been here before.
Finished reading: The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Take Control and Master the Odds by Maria Konnikova 📚