2023 quick thoughts with Adam

We got a quick chat with company founder and Director Adam Clark after he returned refreshed and ready for 2023.  Here’s some thoughts he shared:

SOMETHING FOR THE IT INDUSTRY:

This year we’re going to see a renewed focus on the hybrid workplace.  Businesses like ours are the ones who make it possible for others to do more with less.  So the question is, how can we ensure that an organisation’s various departments spread across geographical chasms, with all the uncertainty we continue to see, can operate with confidence and even more resilience?

I believe with the tightening of the market at the moment, that we’re going to see a lot of people trying to do better with their time, their agility and their technology.

I’m actually really interested to see what kind of innovations will start coming out, especially with people trying to do more with less.  I’m interested to see if organisations are looking to do big capital works to achieve large change, or incremental works to embed a more organic style?

SOMETHING ABOUT SHARING MINDS:

Quite a few of our customers have a need for efficiency, getting back to basics and not being so worried about perception, but using technology to amplify what they can do and getting the job done.  Our focus is definitely on efficiency and outcomes.

SOMETHING FOR ME:

• Something I’d like to focus on this year is swimming with the kids more often. 

• A quote I’ve been thinking about is from James Clear, author of ‘Atomic Habits’:
  If you never question things, your life ends up being limited by other people's imaginations.

• I’m looking forward to being able to smoke the perfect brisket.

If you think we can help with clarifying your organisation’s technology roadmap for the year, or working with your team to bring about internal change, please reach out. I’m always up for a chat, especially where there’s coffee.

All the best for 2023.

WORK FROM HOME SERIES: Dev Superstar, Jack

Working from home is a new experience for many around the world, as we navigate #COVID19 and the effects of social distancing. Some of our team members have been working from home for years, others only weeks, but they’re all ready to give you a sneak peek into what helps them stay productive and focussed.

Jack Curtis - SharePoint Developer

MY SITUATION: YOU’LL NORMALLY FIND ME WORKING AT OUR BRISBANE HEAD OFFICE, BUT I’M 100% REMOTE DURING COVID-19.

Working from home hasn’t really been a challenge for me as I've worked from home before, prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. That being said, being stuck inside for a number of weeks since we shut our office, things have been a bit lonely and different. It really makes you think about how much you miss your colleagues and the social interaction/banter around the office.

However, working from home actually does have some positives! For myself, one of the best perks is the extra hour of sleep in the mornings.

Here are some tips that might help you if you are struggling with working from home:

• Get up for regular breaks! Stop sitting down for so long and get up, stretch your legs and get some fresh air.

• Play some music – The perks of working from home is I can play my tunes as loud as I like!

• Call your colleagues – keep in touch, whether it's for a chat or work purposes. Communication is key in times like these.

• Plan your tasks – At the start of the day, allocate yourself some time to get your tasks in order.

I hope you’re making the most of your WFH time, but if these tips have helped, shout out in the comments.

Best wishes,
Jack

Jack.Curtis(at)sharingminds.com.au

Stay tuned as we interview more of our team for their
unique and effective work from home tips.

WORK FROM HOME SERIES: William the Great

Working from home is a new experience for many around the world, as we navigate #COVID19 and the effects of social distancing. Some of our team members have been working from home for years, others only weeks, but they’re all ready to give you a sneak peek into what helps them stay productive and focussed.

William Cornwill - Specialist SharePoint Consultant

MY SITUATION: Occasionally working from our Melbourne office and client sites, but right now I’m 100% at the home office.

During my three years at Sharing Minds I have often operated out of my home office along with our WeWorks office in the Melbourne CBD, and of course the many coffee shops that I often review (Insta: @coffee_catchup).  I have found that working from home requires an extra level of discipline to ensure that interruptions are kept to a minimum.  My daughter has been doing her high school via distance learning from home since year 9 and this year is completing her VCE, so being home allows me to balance my work and life nicely. 

About two years ago I was diagnosed with a lung disease called pulmonary sarcoidosis, a chronic condition that causes me to have breathing difficulties and fatigue especially when I am stressed.  So being able to work from my home based office also provides me with a calming and reduced stress environment and one that I can control.  During this COVID19 crisis, and due to my lung condition, it has been advised by my doctors to lockdown and self-isolate for about 12 weeks. 

Now, as someone who loves to get out and catch up for coffee, this is proving extremely challenging.  As the rest of the company has begun working from home, I have found the level of communication, especially with the morning all hand video call, to provide the social connection that I had been missing.

My tips for working from home:

• Create a calming work space that is separate from the rest of the household activities – preferably one with views to outside (I use my study and not the kitchen table)

• Only check emails in the morning and towards the end of the day (don’t live in Outlook – get things done)

• Plan your days activities (I use Microsoft To Do to create check lists of activities to be done)

• Take regular breaks to stretch and clear your mind and have a decent lunch

• Listen to some music, burn a candle (in my case I also turn on my salt lamp and humidifier)

• Check in with others regularly (using Microsoft Teams chat and video calls)

• Leave work behind at the end of the day (make sure you knock off)

I hope these tips will help you to find your groove while you get used to working from home.

I’d also love to hear any other useful tips that you’ve come across, so let me know in the comments below.

All the best,
William

William.Cornwill(at)sharingminds.com.au

Stay tuned as we interview more of our team for their
unique and effective work from home tips.

WORK FROM HOME SERIES: One of our Superstars, Ashish

Working from home is a new experience for many around the world, as we navigate #COVID19 and the effects of social distancing. Some of our team members have been working from home for years, others only weeks, but they’re all ready to give you a sneak peek into what helps them stay productive and focussed.

Ashish Ghai, Senior Consultant

MY SITUATION: Mostly working from office and Client Sites with a bit of interstate travel. Right now, I’m working exclusively at home.

Throughout my career, I have been working in a corporate/office environment with a lot of friends (colleagues) and the luxurious facilities that an office provides to facilitate efficiency. I "had" a very strong belief that working in a formal work environment provides discipline, better coordination and teamwork, resulting in a high level of productivity.

When I heard we are going to be working from home due to the current situation, I was a bit thoughtful about how productive it is going be. At home, I have my wife who is a full-time homemaker and a teenager who is schooling from home, like myself. I was a bit sceptical of how it will work with two of us locked in office/class (our rooms) and my wife a bit disconnected in the same premise for most of the day.

I am a morning person, so to get ahead of the day I start early (7ish) to knock a few tasks out of the park, when it is quiet and fresh. Then have a break on the breakfast table with family to get set for the day. We have our daily stand-up via MS Teams on video every morning from 9:15am, a catch-up with all the colleagues on camera.

Key Challenges:

• Keep focus when you have one family member in next room trying to do activities like juicing/ vacuuming 😊

• It can become monotonous working in the same room every day for many days alone without colleagues around.

• At times there are too many meetings and at the end of the day you may find you haven’t got much done.

• Physical stress in sitting stationery for long hours - stiff neck and back.

A few of my tips and tricks to stay focused and be productive:

Adding spices to the curry!

1. Start early to get a lot done and look forward to a break with family.

2. Stay on camera on a daily stand-up and have some fun with your colleagues.

3. Go for 10 minute breaks every 2 hours, or after a long activity or meeting. I head to my apartment balcony to have a refreshing river view and get some fresh air to the brain, or get into the kitchen to add some spices into the curry that is getting cooked. This is my key to break monotony.

4. Watch the meeting times and number of meetings for the day.

5. Track the tasks completed everyday through our timesheet tool - Autotask.

6. Use Microsoft Planner for creating project tasks and that helps me to stay on track for the projects.

7. Use Microsoft Teams to conduct meetings, use more chat than audio to allow multi-tasking.

8. To manage the physical stress, I do a bit of stretching when I feel like I need it, and at the end of the day we make sure we use the balcony, or go down to a park and kick the soccer ball around or play softball cricket with my son.

All this above has enabled me to stay on task and be better connected with the family. I think I am more productive as it gives me back the travel time into work.

Hope you’re all doing well, too.

Cheers,
Ashish

Ashish.Ghai(at)sharingminds.com.au

Stay tuned as we interview more of our team for their
unique and effective work from home tips.

A Passion for Sharing Minds and Sharing Coffee

With over 22 years’ IT industry experience, it is no wonder that I have gained a passion for the intoxicating flavours of a good brew of coffee.  Over the years, I have definitely consumed my good share of the golden elixir, and in the various sales roles I held earlier in my career, many a deal has been struck over a napkin in a busy café.  My passion for coffee is as strong as my passion for helping my customer gain control over their information using SharePoint and Office 365.

Recently, I decided to take my coffee passion into the next gear and enrolled in a barista course.  I was not expecting too much other than to increase my understanding of what makes a great coffee and improve my ability to make some heart or leaf art on top of my latte.  I was surprised at how much science goes into making the perfect coffee, from the roasting process, understanding turn-around and the first and second cracking, through to the size of the grind and amount of coffee required for an espresso versus doppio.  I learnt so much, definitely improved my coffee-making skills and reignited my love for coffee.

I have been rating cafes I have visited for a few years now on my Instagram and recently turned this into a blog called CoffeeCatchup (thanks to Adam Clark for the name idea).

This week, during my visit at our headquarters in Brisbane, my colleagues wanted to put my nearly acquired skills to the test.  I wanted to thank Sybylla from Marketing, who produced “William’s CoffeeCatchup Pop-up Café” signs which turned the normally quiet kitchen area into a busy coffee shop (for one afternoon only).  We went to our local café, Café Amaretto and purchased some of the local Fonzie Abbott blend and then I got to work.

I am always happy to catch up with someone for a coffee and a decent conversation, and it doesn’t always need to be about work (that just helps me expense them back 😊).  So please reach out and I’ll be happy to shout a coffee and share my mind.

Cheers,
William

William.Cornwill(at)SharingMinds.com.au