Diary of a Saasy Girl

At the beginning of this year I took a punt and booked flights and a hotel for Dreamforce. I had missed the event. I had always considered it my version of a Yoga retreat, somewhere where I can recharge, catch up with the lovely people of the community and learn. At the time I didn't realise how true this would feel for me.  Having being diagnosed with breast cancer in April I put together a life spreadsheet of important dates and activities that I didn't want to miss. Dreamforce was one of them and I worked with my medical team to  work my Chemo treatments around the event. Fast forward to September and with 15/16 Chemo treatments completed I was off to Dreamforce, with the promise to complete my cycle upon my return. It was so good to be back in San Francisco again, and experiencing the buzz that Dreamforce brings. It was a much smaller audience this year; the team played the numbers cautiously due to Covid still circling around the population. But saying that, it still mana...

Yesterday we headed into the hospital for my last Chemo session, number 16. We arrived to the Oncology suite bearing gifts for the medical team. They consisted of sucky sweets to replenish the jars in the suite for the patients and their visitors to chomp on, just as we had. We also gave a plant for the consultation room and posh Belgium biscuits for the staff to share and dunk in their tea if they so wished. There was  one last present, a framed version of My Life Spreadsheet. If you have been following along with my previous blogs then you'll understand the importance of the spreadsheet. I presented an original version to my Oncologist the first time we met. The spreadsheet plotted all the important dates and holidays that I had planned from May onwards for the rest of the year. 2022 was a big year for me. It represented the freedom from 2 years of pandemic and in addition, I was turning 50 in September. I wanted to catch up on all the things I had missed in life. My year was pla...

In the world of software delivery, project teams will often focus to produce an output of product on a cyclical basis. In other words, project teams work in sprints of activity. Sprints are a dedicated tranche of time where the team will focus on working on a particular set of tasks, with the aim to complete them within the time set, such as 2 weeks.  I am now on the second phase of Chemo which is a third drug, being administered to me on a weekly basis. I now feel like I am in my own sprint cycle. Let me tell you how this is going.  I have 12 sessions of this drug and I have already completed 7. The weekly sessions are helping to notch up the numbers but I do feel like a hamster on its wheel.  This is my routine. Chemo happens on a Wednesday so I duly head to the hospital to get my fill of chemicals for the day. Wednesday is also known as going out for lunch day as I do get fed while I am there. I get presented a menu choice of a hot meal special of the day or regular op...

This blog has been playing in the back of my mind for several weeks now. It's been superseded by other subjects along the way as they have been more time relevant. But now is the time to write this one.  In projects, Lessons Learnt is when the project team look back over previous implementations to reflect on what went well, not so well and what they would change if they did it all again. It helps the team to learn from mistakes and also use again the assets or knowledge that proved beneficial.  I'm using this concept of Lesson's Learnt to track back my own medical history. Strap yourselves in folks, this is a long one... Warning - if you are in any way affected by medical conversations or abuse from a medical professional then you may want to give this chapter a miss.  Here goes... My childhood was pretty uneventful. My mum tells me I went to hospital at the age of 3 for a cyst on my eye, other than that no real scrapes or broken bones to speak of.  My periods start...

When I do conference talks I will mostly present on the subject of project delivery and often I will mention about the Change Curve and how this affects people when they are going through a project that will deliver some form of change.  Let's start this blog with some science. It was Elizabeth Kubler-Ross in 1969 who came up with the Change Curve, a graphic showing the 5 stages of the grieving cycle for terminally ill patients. It was later picked up and realised that people in work situations also go through the same grief cycle when they are subject to change in their working environment. For delivery practitioners, by understanding the emotional change that people go through can help pull people through the business change in a smoother way. The 5 stages of the Change Curve are: 1. Shock and Denial - When the individual doesn't want to believe what is happening. 2. Anger - When reality of the situation starts to kick in and anger rises up in the individual. 3. Bargaining - ...

I know what you're thinking, you wait a few weeks for the next blog and then 2 turn up in close proximity. I had to get the previous one published to tell you all the fun things I had been doing before I could get onto this one. My blogs are literally queuing up in my mind on what I want to write next. Busy brain.  Let's get on with this one and what I have to share with you today. In the world of projects the concept of a show and tell is as it suggests, you stop and show and talk about what you have been doing. This can be helpful in a project to understand what progress has been made and what rest needs to be done, or changed to ensure a successful delivery. Now let's convert that to my current Chemo treatment. I have now completed 4 out of the 16 Chemo sessions. (I know, 16 - seems like so many - ugh!) These first 4 were a two drug combination administered every 2 weeks to me. These were considered the tough ones to get through.  Remember, if you have been following alo...

Dear reader, if you have been following along with my blogs then you will remember that I have a life spreadsheet that notes important dates. Also, in project terms I am the customer and I have a say in what is delivered and when and have my own timelines to work with. I'd like to think that I'm not entirely beholden to my medical situation.  Well, June had a lot of important dates for me namely; London's Calling Conference, World Tour Week, my Dad's 80th birthday, my fella's birthday and a Billie Eilish gig. Phew! If you've been wondering where I've been, then I have been mostly doing all of that and also dropped in for my 4th chemo session too. Let me tell you all about the past few weeks.  Just because I have cancer doesn't mean that I have to stay at home and mope about feeling sorry for myself. Having things to look forward and staying positive is the best thing to do, even if my agenda might be stretching things. I know, bad patient! First up, Lond...