While out on my run this evening, I was suddenly engulfed by the awesome smell of… jasmine. It’s one of my favourite smells! Together with the sun which is setting later in the evening and the warm days, Spring is definitely in the air. I ran the rest of the way home clutching my piece of jasmine with the biggest smile on my face! Best. Run. Ever.
It’s mid-term appraisal time in my office and I’m pleased to say that my discussion with my boss went well.
Nowadays you get an app for almost anything so a part of me wishes that appraisals could rather be done via an app in a similar way in which runners track their running performance via Strava.
What Strava does is take all the info recorded on my Garmin running watch and presents it in fancy graphs with an analysis of all runs, times, distances etc. You can’t fool the analysis. My Garmin knows when I have struggled up the nasty uphills. My Garmin knows when I have hit those down hills and managed to speed up. It is also able to track my distances accurately to the last meter and display it on a map.
There’s no bullshitting involved. What you see is what you get; measurable and exact.
On Strava I can’t get away with boasting inaccurate pace times or falsifying PBs (personal bests) because it’s all documented and open for all to see. It’s also a very clear indication of when I slack off and don’t run.
An app would assist my boss to track team performance every month – the highs and the lows; projects completed, times when staff members have gone the extra mile and the impact of stress in the office on attitude and morale.
By far the greatest benefit of the app would be during appraisal times when majority of staff feel that scores and ratings are largely based on people’s perceptions instead of real measurement. It would be a far more accurate and fair comparison of everyone’s performance.
It’s just a thought running through my head…
When KK and I planned our 2013 holiday last year, July 2013 was many moons away. With so much on my mind in the last couple of weeks, I have not been able to get excited or even think about the trip. Until now… As we do our final packing and checklists, I’m beyond excited! This is what I’m looking forward to the most:
I’m also taking a break from blogging until I get back. Well, blogging online. As bloggers know, you’re always drafting a post in your head! 
As with most things in life, once you’ve taken a break, getting back into it takes effort, even with running. I had been itching to start my running again (after going into hibernation for a few weeks) and decided to enter the Pirates 10km race. I was surprised KK decided to run the race because his usual mileage on Sunday is between 15 and 20 kms.
We’ve only run Pirates once before after @tanyakovarsky introduced us to the race when she organised a twunners (runners who tweet) tweetup in 2011. Luckily the race day was not as cold as two years ago but I still wasn’t taking any chances and arrived in three layers, including gloves and a buff. (I kinda look like a running pirate, hey?)
It might be a short distance in KK’s eyes but a lot happens over 10kms…
Be it a Knysna marathon, a Pirates 10km or a 3km jog around the block, there’s something about that sweaty face when you get home. That glow. There’s something quite special about that divine hot shower when you’re done. The afternoon nap. That feeling which is indescribable unless you’ve been there.
It’s what @angelo2711 tweeted me on the morning of the race, “A run is a run – enjoy!”
Keeping up with the Walkers... 