September Wrap-Up 2021
September was a great month. Several initiatives at work have reached a new level of maturity and my teams have been crushing it. I made several connections with founders, managers, and straight-up interesting people through the interwebs and a language learning app which I'm loving. I was able to publish my years' of onboarding experience into a series of blog posts, resources, and maybe even an online course... Here's September's wrap up.
What I learned or continued to learn: 👨🏽🏫
South Africa's startup scene is incredible and the world should pay attention.
There's so much going on in South Africa right now it's hard to keep up, but a common theme I see and continue to hear is that the startup scene there is booming. I connected with someone who is helping 7 first time founders launch their new businesses before the end of the year! That's ambitious, but I love it.
Taking a vacation and completely disconnecting from work, social media, and the news is truly refreshing.
I was able to take a whole week off from work and didn't check (any of) my emails, social media accounts, or the news. I averaged 17k steps per day, went to several parks, spent time with family, and explored Toronto during the most beautiful time of year here. Everyone should take at least a week off every quarter if possible and completely disconnect from the internet. You'll be refreshed and perhaps motivated to pick up where you left off. You might be surprised how impactful this can be for your well-being. Time off should be required.
The importance of building your bench
The only way that I was able to enjoy my time off was knowing that I work with incredible people who I trust to keep the company thriving in my absence. I can't recommend investing in your team highly enough. It's very rewarding to see your colleagues grow, taking on more responsibility, and eventually, the ability to mentor their direct reports. I'm going to write a full blog post about this soon.
The right colleagues make all the difference
Working with someone who understands the ins and outs of what you're trying to accomplish while staying proactive and keeping you on track is life changing.
People are making a huge impact through their businesses
I was fortunate enough to connect with a founder who is on a mission to reforest the planet and help companies reduce both the company's and their employees' carbon footprint. If ever there was as time to get involved with an organization like this, it was ages ago! But, we might as well make whatever changes we can now to work towards a more sustainable society and reduce the global carbon footprint.
Jumping rope is still really hard
I've learned that there are essentially 3 types of workouts that I like and make me feel good. 1. lifting weights, 2. freeletics, 3. jumping rope. Jumping rope continues to be the hardest physical activity to ease back into but it feels good once I'm done and reenergizes me when I skip before work or during lunch. I think physical activity is very important for everyone, especially for those of us who need to manage a team and or an organization.
Favorite blog posts this month 🖥
Apps I'm loving 📱
Seedlang: Easy German
HelloTalk (language partner app)
Book Club
📚 A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles - I enjoyed this.
📚 Next Up: Hotel Pastis by Peter Mayle
Image by Blessing Ri on Unsplash