This week I have spent a lot of time on trains. Monday: Cardiff – Sheffield. Tuesday: Sheffield – Edinburgh. Wednesday: Edinburgh. Thursday: Edinburgh – Glasgow. Friday: Glasgow – Cardiff. It’s been a joy to connect with colleagues and friends around the edges of a rewarding work trip and I made extra time to see more and connect with some of my favourite people who I haven’t seen in person for a long time. Work travel,…
Maren Deepwell Posts
Earlier this month the open knowledge community celebrated a big milestone as Wikipedia turned 25! I blogged about it on the Reclaim Blog, and had the pleasure of joining a lovely line up to celebrate: It was inspiring to have a conversation about open knowledge, particularly in an age of information abundance (read Dave Cormier’s book on that subject in case you haven’t yet!) . Incidentally, the book’s subtitle, “The Community is the Curriculum” would…
One of my fellow coaches, Helen, a wonderful executive coach for Headteachers, recently shared online that her word of the year for 2026 is ‘analogue’ and that was music to my ears. As regular readers know, I’m a big fan of all things analogue, and the post prompted me to re-read The Revenge of Analogue by David Sax. Although the book was published ten years ago, and some of the research it mentions has been superseded,…
January is usually a time for planning for the year ahead. Whether at work or at home, there’s a whole year of goals yet to achieve stretched out in front of us, and I find that can be a little bit overwhelming. Whilst I am a fan of planning ahead, with so much to do, and only a finite amount of time and energy to do it with, I find I need an antidote to…
Here in Wales the start of the year has been very cold and this morning we even had a light dusting of snow. So close to the coast it rarely snows a lot, but the ice on the roofs I can see through my window as I sit at my desk is a good reminder that winter is here. In a few days, I’ll be back to work as usual, but for the time being…
This is the last post of the year, and this one is for my most trusty office buddy, Posey! Posey turns FIVE tomorrow, and her adventures over the past year have been a big source of joy for me each and every month. I always dreamt of having a dog when I was little, and I am happy and grateful indeed that I have been able to fulfil that dream now that I live a…
I love writing these end of year posts and I have been doing it for quite a few years: 2024 focused on gratitude, 2023 on my (then new) business venture, 2022 I looked back at 10 milestones, 2021 – the year of the PUPPY – had a lot packed into it and 2020, well, you will remember your own 2020. I wrote two posts in December that year: 2020 #altc – the year forged in…
It’s the season for office parties, and I am in a festive mood. In this holiday-themed post (and on the podcast, too), I want to share a few of the ways in which I reflect on, celebrate and end the year. If you are a fellow freelancer or small business owner, you might find inspiration for your own celebration here. Like you, I’ve been to a lot of office parties and work do’s, and most…
It is nearly time to wrap up blogging for another year, and I’m feeling all festive. Shout out to Jim Groom, who is blogging at all hours in the run up to celebrating 20 years of his bavatuesdays blog. Over here on my own domain, things are progressing at a more leisurely pace, and it’s time to look at what’s been happening on the blog over the course of the year. In 2023 I posted…
This month, as a little gift from me to you, you can join in with my leadership coaching subscription service, AKA Long Distance Leadership Postcards for free. I’ve made December free for all to access, and this month’s topic includes three free resources to explore. Whether your 2025 has been busy and productive, or brought unexpected challenges, whether you are getting ready to rest or just about to set out in a new direction, I…