Choose your own adventure or sometimes adventure creeping up and choosing you

Over the past year I have been greatly inspired and in some cases quite envious of several people I have crossed paths or tweets with who have had the courage to quit their jobs to discover or rediscover that ‘thing’ they’re pursuing in life. This has happened in many forms – whether it be travelling extensively, returning to study, starting a new job, or simply to hang out and allow life to sweep them up, spin them around a few times and see where they land.

For me the theme of 2010 has been change. To date it has been more the under rumblings of change – that it’s creeping up on me and about to tap me on the shoulder but every time I turn around there is nothing there. This year I have been caught up in the spiral of the ‘corporate routine’ – work at work, work at home, work on my way between work and home with all moments being about productivity and not wasting time so I can squeeze in more work later. This has all been for some grand goal…although I’m not quite sure what that is…somewhere between passion, career, giving back to the professional world that is caring for me, and trying to create a balance between my creative and more academic self.

Then unexpectedly change came along and didn’t just tap me on the shoulder but tackled me hard to the ground winding me. I am still catching my breath. After an amazing 18 months at CPA Australia where I have had the opportunity to jump in the social media, emerging technology, knowledge management deep end, flailing at times and other times sipping a cocktail on a floating sunbed, I am about to embark on a new adventure. I have been offered and accepted a scholarship at Swinburne University in the Faculty of Design to complete my PhD full time – starting in just a couple of weeks!

I suggest you skip this paragraph if you want to avoid the PhD talk…My research will look at redesigning organisations as adaptive social ecosystems. The focus is on human behaviour and relationships within the workplace to develop a holistic framework for designing organisations adaptive to ongoing change, in particular the relationships and interdependencies between learning, environment and social connectedness. It’s a hybrid kind of approach where I will be reading lots and drawing from design thinking, service design, social business design, organisation design, (yes lots of design stuff!) as well as organisational learning, learning and development, knowledge management, and urban planning foundations (just to name a few!) This will refine over time but this is my current plan.

I’m also really excited that I will be working with Michelle Lambert, KM lady of awesomeness, to support her work particularly for Knowledge Management Roundtable Victoria and the Change Management Toolbox. Lots of fun times ahead!

I expect there will be moments ahead where I am tackled to the ground and winded, where I flail hopelessly in a sea of thesis and some moments where I sip a cocktail at sunset. (or perhaps 3am!) So as I catch my breath and allow change and adventure to take hold of me – as I get into a new kind of routine and drive myself a little mad writing my thesis you will be able to play along and see it unfold here.