Last week I spent a hugely enjoyable day aboard the Midnight Star. Cap’n Glenn Le Santo had advertised for four crewmates to join him on a canal trip from Limehouse Basin to Camden Lock. Having recently had such fun with the Never Records experiment (a result of simply saying yes), I decided to take advantage of this next opportunity. I said yes. We were joined by lookout Barry Furby, vice admiral KateGL and first mate Ntathu Allen. I was cabin boy.
The day was a mixture of hard work and serious relaxation. Operating locks is tough and I lost count how many we journeyed through. Drinking beer and great conversation is the reward. Here are a few more pictures from the trip.
The day closed with a great canalside party where more twitter folk, including Claire Boyles, joined in for beer and conversation. I managed a quick sketch of the canal to keep my learning to paint experiment flowing (ouch!).
- Camden Lock
This was a great day on many counts. I met new friends. I saw London from a totally new viewpoint. I practiced aspects of team working. I painted. I enjoyed myself.
The teamwork aspects of the day were really powerful for me. We were all very different people and had never worked together previously. From a fairly clunky start at Limehouse we improved our teamworking efforts considerably by the time we moored up at Camden Lock. The sequencing of activity improved and as we worked together and became more aware of each other, we gently and easily shifted from one task to another, playing to our strengths.
Increasingly when working with teams who are seeking to redefine and improve the way they work, I’m encouraging people to try new experiences together. Being in different places, seeing and trying different things, and achieving new things together are all useful and enjoyable ways to make work better. Difference is very powerful, and when we can integrate people’s skills and enthusiasm without losing their difference, we can achieve great things together. Aye aye Cap’n.