For Monday 22nd June – Sunday 28th June 2026.
An entire year, 52 weeks, of weeknoting! Glad I built this routine, it’s really helpful to stocktake and reflect on what I’ve been up to each week.
At work:
- Catchment project: Working on trying to build relationships with wider stakeholders and rubbing up against systems and cultures which really aren’t conducive (because of historical reasons). Spent a huge amount of mental and emotional energy trying to figure things out, have booked in additional help and mentoring and advice, but it’s been an exhausting week and I’m feeling very blocked on this, which is having a knock-on effect on my other work too. Generally dissatisfied with work, life, and everything. (Spoiler: it all gets better next week!)
- City-wide engagement project: Had the kick-off meeting for a project supporting a city board with coordinating their engagement approaches and delivery, and supporting the board to integrate the findings and their citizens’ voices into their decision-making. Very early days yet but will be an interesting one, that I get to work on with long-term collaborator Mike Corcoran.
- Strategy co-design project: Getting ready for the first of 3 workshops next week, and longer-term planning.
Deliverables this week:
- Cultural competence training: on the hottest day of the week I had a room of 24 women from the Vale Domestic Abuse Services, for a half day session on cultural competence. I don’t normally deliver training barefoot but this week it was a question of survival. 😀 I was also trying to set the tone for everyone in the room to do what they needed for their own wellbeing.
“During an extreme heat weather warning you managed to engage and inform everyone on the team whilst still taking into account the unusual weather and the support needs that brings, that’s no mean feat! As a half day session, I found it to be a great overview of the topic, with plenty of reflection and food for thought. We also came away with activity ideas and resources to take forward which is always appreciated, as well as a deeper understanding of the topic which will no doubt inform everyone’s practice going forward. This session was exactly what we’d hoped for, thank you so much Noreen!”
Development this week:
- Didn’t win the tender for 2 days of facilitation in July – which I am very relieved about. In hindsight I shouldn’t have put in a proposal, the turnaround was so tight: 12 days’ work over 1 month, which is roughly how much billable work I do in a normal month, *on top* of my normal work and existing projects?! It would have been madness. And no way could I keep the time clear and not book in work for a month, just in case, because I would have been without any work if I didn’t get it. Making a note for the future – just because I like the client and their organisation doesn’t mean I have to write a proposal when they ask. Honest feedback on their timescales and procurement processes is also helpful. (Maybe. Hopefully.)
- Client meeting to arrange some co-production training in the autumn.
- Scoping meeting to support the development of a citizen voice structure across a region.
- Attended the last webinar in the dialogue series I have been attending, it’s been really good.
At home:
- Welsh: My brain’s been a mess this week (see work situation above) and I didn’t do my homework. Boo.
- Distracted myself by reading another packet of links from the “read later” pile.
- Pilates: 2 this week because the Friday class was cancelled (the pilates studio got too hot). 2 HIIT. No swim this weekend, I spent the Sunday with an old friend doing very little instead, but very inland.
- Did some DIY on Saturday and put up some blinds, and marked out the places for a picture wall. (I was avoiding thinking about work.)
- Mini project trying to figure out my nutrition and food patterns, to adjust to perimenopausal health as well as increased strength training, and working out what I need to eat and when.
- Am in the middle of navigating medical systems and sorting out referrals, because after having had tonsillitis 3 times in 8 weeks, including 2 rounds of antibiotics, my throat is still not right and now my ear is slightly blocked. There’s something going on we need to look into. I feel wonky.
- After a hiatus of approximately 8 years (because of reasons that included Covid and buying a flat) I went back to my tattooist to get some colour added onto the tattoos we started all those years ago. Aiming to make this a monthly appointment now.
- Exciting news: I’ve fallen in love with a kitten who needs a home but is 750 miles away. After much cogitating and discussing with friends, and with the lady who’s rescued her from off the street (near Lyon in France) who’s very kindly willing to do the legwork to sort out the microchipping, rabies vaccine, pet travel documents, etc – I have decided to go get her when she’s old enough to travel, in September.
Photo credit: @gwennpetrichor@eldritch.cafe on Mastodon