Evaluations

 12 Feb. Zoom. 

Today I had my final call with Claire Webster Saaremets, where she thanked me for working with Skimstone, and we evaluated the experience.

The obvious challenge we talked about was remote working. For me this was most obviously hardest with the breakdown in communication with Sheryl, but more than anything I felt that not being able to meet people at the beginning slowed the speed I could integrate into the group.

Claire said that she and Peter both felt I was a good fit for the company ("because you get the humour!"), and I was glad that I could fit in eventually.

The most important thing for me was the individual responsibility that I had, which was quite empowering in letting me work and live or die by my sword! 

I had the most fun interviewing people for the trailer, which I commented was good because these were the kind of conversations that I would be having had we met in person as a group; you just can't have the same sort of 1-to-1 conversations in a group zoom call! It was great to meet everyone and see how they ticked and worked: like all English students I think, I am a people person at heart! Claire also understood that I feed off other people's energy, especially in the theatre/band set-up that they have, and I'm sorry I missed that.

I assured Claire I would be coming in when I could, and I look forward to going to Peter's film nights and Tai-Chi sessions still too!

Claire was very appreciative of how I organised the trailer, which is maybe something I have underplayed. She recognised the difficulties in getting people, especially remotely, to fit availability around each-other. She recognised that Sheryl was not very responsive but also that she had a lot of work. My take away is that early communication within these kind of things is key - better to talk too much and irritate the person you're working with, than miss out and irritate the person you're working for!

This was a great conversation as Claire also offered more advice for running my own business, which I had told her is an aspiration of mine. It was good to know I can always come back, and Claire also encouraged me to come back to get a better handle on the financial side of things too, with applications, reports and funding packages. At the end of the next project will be a particularly rich time to engage with this, and I would love to do that!

Claire valued how I was receptive to other people, and really empowered other people to speak. She had some evaluation from the people I interviewed, and she was very flattering in her praise of me in directing the interviews and steering them in an easy but useful way.

I told Claire that I really appreciated how I had been listened to, and that real change had been made on the back of what I had suggested. Claire responded that I had been listened to because I had taken the time to really engage with what I was working or feeding back on.

Claire had advice in that she warned me to be very clear of my mission when I do start my own business, and not to water myself down to chase funding, and instead choose my field and find funders within that field. We both remarked on the value of the people working in a company: I was commenting on how together Skimstone feels, and that that's what makes the company tick. It was nice that Claire recognised leadership qualities in me too, which I will take in good stead for the future!

Claire appreciated my sense of enthusiasm and commitment to the cause. She encouraged me to reach out to other people though and communicate more freely whenever things get harder. She liked my energy and ideas, and facilitation skills, which she said she had struggled to teach in others before. She appreciated that I was a team player, which made me happy as this is something I pride myself on.

Claire again repeated how she was really interested in my other volunteering work, listening to those isolating who are lonely, and she felt that really let me fit into the company well.

For my final task, I provided some quotes about working with Skimstone, and a photo for the next newsletter!

I will be sad to be away from the gang for a bit, but I'm sure I'll be back very soon, and certainly for the next festival! Anyway, it's nearly 3pm so time to submit this blog!