New Ways of Working

Since I left full time employment and started my own companies, I have been creatively busy. The good news is that I am doing well. The bad news is that I hadnt realized just how much of an addiction work is.

I guess for me, it doesnt matter. Work for me is reading, writing, eating, talking, thinking, laughing, shaking my head. Not exactly difficult.

My dad, for example, was a carpenter and had to work inside and outside in all weathers and do exact measurements, build things, hit nails into wood and screw around (if you know what I mean) - very physical labour. The fact that he did this for a brewery kind of helped, but he also worked on building sites and in an old wool mill. Then there are friends who work on oil rigs off the north sea or are in the hotel trade. That's work.

Work for me is fun. I am on a couple of boards - Alberta Ballet, Heritage Community Foundation, Galileo Educational Network (where I am chair) - and helping to create the Alberta Chamber of Technologies (see www.2020network.ca). I have been able to write some very interesting pieces for the Edmonton Journal (see my journalistic blog - look to your right and click), Alberta Venture and even Lifestyle 55+ (where I am their technology editor). Alberta Venture also took a piece recently (see http://www.albertaventure.com/abventure_4621.html ) and I have real hopes of my piece for Atlantic Monthly.

I have consulting work through networks and links with others, including a nice piece for Molson and have just finished a very significant piece for Alberta Sustainable Resources and another for Alberta Human Resources and Employment.

I have someone pay me to look systematically at the future of various technologies, both for e-learning (Contact North) and for ICT (ICT Council, Alberta) as well as being hard at work on the fibre roadmap for Alberta (via ARC) and the strategy for innovation in Canada (thanks to Innovation & Science).

So fun. But work.

Maybe its time to drive to San Fransisco and then onto Oregon and visit the working son.