A Day In The Life Of Me

Last week, my office started a program called 'Lunch And Learn'. This is where you bring your own lunch, into the sessions, and you listen in to people from different areas of the business talk about their jobs and how exciting it is, and then after, it makes you feel like 'Crap, I've got the most boring job in the world'. We had the same program at my old work, but I never attended any. And so when they launched it last week at my current workplace, I did not attend any because (a) can't be fucked (haha), and (b) I already have lunch plans with my friends. Until...... my boss sent me an email with only one sentence saying "I need to talk to you about this". I thought to myself, Oh man... I had better attend at least one session to pretend I am interested.

I was wrong.

Instead of just attending the session, she wanted me to present on behalf of my team and talk about 'A Day in the Life of a ___ (my job)'. She might call it 'professional development' for me, but I call it 'classic example of hand-balling'. Management probably requested for her to do it, instead she decides it should be me to present. Great, just great. I had to prepare one slide myself about A Day in the Life of me! I had no idea. My day is really not that interesting at all. I googled it.. I asked my friends..

This is what Little-Miss-Whats-For-Lunch wrote back to me in an email:

My name is Mrs _ Ng. My husband's name is M_ but he has a dual identity...... some call him K_. I have a dog named E_. I wake up at 2am because "the stupid dog" wakes me up so he can sit in the garden in the middle of the night. When I finally go back to sleep, it isn't long before my alarm goes off and I have to get up. While I get ready, I pump up the latest song of the day/week/month (which my friend 'Little-Miss-Whats-For-Lunch' had no idea about until I tell her) on my BOSE speakers while my husband is snoring away. I leave my home in Oakleigh and head for Oakleigh station to begin my commute into work. Upon arrival at Parliament station, I immediately proceed to Engels where I must check in (because I want to keep my status as the mayor). No coffee for me because it makes me feel weird. Chai latte is my favourite beverage at this time of the morning. I quickly walk down 1 and 1/2 blocks to 101 Collins Street and be at my desk by around 8:30am, ready for my meeting which is soon after. During the meeting, I tell everyone on the scale of 1 to 10 how happy I am (I always say I'm good.....as if I'd ever say I'm a panda), if I achieved yesterday's goals and what my goals are for the day. By the time I get to my desk, I usually have an email waiting for me asking me what my lunch plans are for the day. After a few emails, lunch is set and I just have to do my regular work until lunchtime comes. At around 12pm, I lock my PC and head towards the next lunch menu which was decided at 9:30am. During the day I work hard and make conversations with my colleagues around me. We talk about lots of things such as their kid's school trips to Europe, cross-bred (or not cross-bred) dogs......sometimes I get the odd cup cake here and there for no apparent reason. I get asked if my husband got a text message from a colleague for his birthday and I feel like telling him "its been 3 months, get over it!". I HATE being called Juju at work...... When it's time to go home at 5pm, I sometimes go past Fitness First but I'm frustrated because I think I have gained weight but no idea where or how! Finally, I go home and wait for my husband to cook dinner. Afterwards, its time to watch the Kardashians which I recorded on my Foxtel IQ but sometimes the husband and the "stupid dog" annoy me because they can't give me 20 mins of peace once a week to watch my favourite TV show! Bed time.....sleeping in my nice Peter Alexander pajamas. And then its 2am and it starts all over again......

She describes A Day in the Life of me... most accurately. She is absolutely spot on! Haha I swear I nearly fell of my chair laughing when her email came through.

Anyway, I was able to come up with some real work on a slide for my preso, and I even got Little-Miss-Drink-A-Lot to help make it look pretty. Lifesaver!

Finally yesterday, I stood behind one of those formal brown stands where they lay the laptop and the microphone, next to a projector screen, in front of more than 50 people.... and I spoke about my team, what we do.. who we are made of.. yada yada yada. It was certainly most nerve wrecking and I did not even recognise my own voice. I spoke reallyreallyfast. OMG I have done this before!! Many times!! In my old job (in three different countries, in fact, even to the CEO from Canada)!! But I guess being in a new environment, in a new business, and being relatively new to the role.. I could not hide the nerves.

At the end of the presentation, I was so relieved. Many people came up to me telling me I did really well, which I sort of have my doubts, because it feels like they were trying to reassure me or something like that, especially after seeing me so nervous in front of my audience. My boss said she got terrific feedback, which I mutter under my breath 'Yeah right'. That might be the end of my presenting career perhaps? Just glad that its over!