Wow, Month 1 – tick! It was a huge week in all aspects of my life. Taking a few moments of quiet time in between all the craziness has been needed to keep the sanity in check.
I look back on what I have achieved so far, and it was a big fist in the air as I just finished tonight the prep activities as part of the first 4 weeks. Not sure about everyone else, but for me, it was a mammoth effort as I have
- read lots
- listened and watched many interesting videos
- finished the last of meeting my team members
- networked with different people from past CSC assignments
This week I met the last of my team mates – Yen from Vietnam. When I saw Yen’s introduction profile I knew that her and I would hit it off and was looking forward to the chat. Not only very similar passions such as photography, loves to travel, music and yoga, but also in our spirituality and way of life in thinking. Sure enough, an hour went by very quickly as we compared stories, beliefs, and experiences, and I was fascinated to listen to her stories about her belly dancing competition days, and her love of cats.
Highlights of Week 4:
- my new passport arrived and that certainly made it all real.
- began to learn about media and communications, the do’s and don’ts, and understanding what our key messages are about this wonderful CSC experience; how we can effectively blog and use social media.
- read about photography tips that made me smile such as this article “Your Camera doesn’t matter” to which I agree with the points that were made. How many times people say to me “wow, you must have a great camera” and 9 times out of 10 I have taken that great pic using my phone. Like any artist, there are many tools you can use, but at the end of the day, it’s all about what is in your head and what you are seeing that you capture, all about the composition, having that eye for it.
- I created a group chat which has provided an opportunity to talk to my CSC family on a regular basis, and to share pics as we build on that teaming which is a critical part of any project. There is no “I” in “Team”! So with that, you need to know whom you are working with. So what better way, but to bring everyone together in a group chat, and to just “chit chat”!
- getting on good old Google to begin exploring places around San Fran that we as a team can explore while in the area. Through my interactions with the team, I have discovered a lot of us like the outdoors, adventure, travel and photography amongst the many talents and skills of each person. We have a long list which will require some voting on.
More sharing:
One of the TED videos I listened to this week was on “A Danger of a Single Story“. A fascinating talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. A great speaker, and such a good topic that Chimamanda spoke of, that I thought I would share with you all.
Although I personally am aware that a person has many elements, often we hear one thing, and make up our mind that they fit into a certain mold. I, myself, am guilty of this. However, to change, it’s having knowledge, it’s having awareness of ourselves and our thinking, that we can, in turn, change!
One example of “a single story” that happened today … I heard someone say, “that little boy was not even Australian”. I enquired as to how they came to that conclusion when they didn’t even know the little boy. For them, it was looks and their accent sounding different. But by broadening that person’s mind, I simply said that being young, yes; whilst from a different family background, they may speak that language at home with their family and loved ones; but all this does not mean that little boy may not have been born in Australia, or maybe he has been here a while, and is now an Australian citizen.
So never assume anything, and do not box or label something or someone. It takes work, it takes awareness of our own thoughts, and what we are saying, but it can be done. Learn all you can, and if you are not able to, then try not to make a single story and make assumptions, keep an open mind!
Do you have any examples of a single story that you can share?
Sharon Tunley 