When I was a young girl, I couldn’t wait for my girl cousins to come for a visit. I liked their company, of course, and it was fun to hear family stories and gossip from a different perspective. But there was also the added attraction of what they brought with them… magazines!
They were allowed to read - and even own - copies of Teen Beat magazine and a host of other rags that chronicled the glamorous lives of musicians, movie stars, and other celebrities. We’d take tall glasses of grape koolaid and stacks of magazines down to the lake and sit on the dock with our toes in the water, oohing and aahing at clothes, fancy parties, and exotic lifestyles.
“Someday I’m going to be a jet-setter!” my cousin announced, and I quickly said “Me too!” even though I couldn’t really imagine what it would be like to own more than one suitcase, or to look down on clouds from the window of a jet plane, or to order room service, or to talk on the phone long distance for more than a few minutes. No matter what the magazines said, that was too much glamour for me to imagine.
I still can’t imagine it - the glamour, I mean. These days I’m on planes several times per month, going back and forth to client sites and speaking engagements. Trust me - it’s not glamorous. Still, I kinda like it. Especially when I consider the alternative: driving.
Which brings me to this morning. I woke up at 5:30 in Orlando (where I live - in the actual city, not at Disney World). Had to be at a client site at 12:30 in Miami, and I was driving. Meanwhile, I was scheduled to lead a Knowledge Exchange on Data Governance Principles for the Data Governance and Stewardship Community of Practice at 11 AM - something I needed both phone and web connectivity for.
So I got on the road a bit after 6:30, fought my way out of the city and onto the Turnpike, and started the long, boring, boring, boring drive south. This time was nicer than most - for about a half hour I drove past cow pastures that were dusted with low-lying fog that looked like frost. By about 9 AM I was getting anxious to check email to make sure the morning’s schedule was still on, but I was stuck in a huge South Florida dead zone.
Finally I made it to where I was going, and I set up for the Knowledge Exchange. No dice - I was relying on my Sierra card for my laptop, and the building I was in blocked the signal. And that is how this glamourous twenty first century jetsetter found herself sitting in her car outside of a Burger King in Miami Shores, squinting at her laptop that was squished against the dashboard, conferencing with a group of other frequent fliers on our cell phones for over an hour about guiding principles for Data Governance programs.
By the way, the discussion was fascinating. We had program leaders from a variety of verticals weighing in. We had experienced leaders of mature programs as well as newbies, managers of small groups and multinationals, those who feel they are meeting their goals, and some who wanted to share lessons learned. We have a follow-on call scheduled for tomorrow, a little earlier so our friends in Europe can join us. We’re compiling a list of principles, which we’ll share in a come-one-come-all session next month.
Meanwhile, I’m in my hotel room, my laptop on my actual lap, my medium-sized suitcase flung on the other bed, and room service dishes stacked neatly on the desk. And right now, I’m fulfilling my other childhood dream of being a writer. Life is good.
