Maybe I’m ill

Flying chandeliers in Vienna. cc-by Laura Hilliger

Last week I traveled to Vienna for the ePIC conference where December Laura might have been overly brutal. Despite the awesome comment that I was doing a great job at “curating [my] personality”, I did not feel self contained in the slightest. I nearly flipped a table when Some Dude™ from the Department of Commerce called all of humanity “talent supply”. I basically told the entire room to STFU when a quiet French lady wasn't being listened to. I laughed out loud when A Dude™ invented circles.

Ah yes, friends, my patience is thin this time of year anyway, and going to a conference and pretending like The Dudes™ are brilliant and innovative instead of narcissistic space suckers was especially difficult. You might say that women just shouldn't bother stroking men's egos and making shit easier for them. If you think this, you're either a young woman who still has the energy to pretend like we'll ever be equals, an older woman who has nothing to lose anymore, a radical with more energy than me right now, or you're That Dude™ who thinks you can empathize with the female/trans/nonbinary experience because you have Deep Thoughts™. Sigh.

On top of it, I am sicker than I've been in years. Keeping the windows closed to the Vienna snow made the event a super spreader. Sadly, the one session on Feminist Practices was canceled due to this reality.

Also, did I mention that I had a wonderful time in Vienna last week? It was so fantastic to be in person with some people I respect and admire. It was glorious to laugh about all The Dudes™ with people who were also amazed at the audacity of some of the stupid. It was lovely to almost get trapped at Mozart’s grave and then soothe our souls with Glühwein. It was encouraging to have conversations that will influence work next year. The snow, the lights, and the reality that there are a lot of people in the world and we don't have to pay attention to all of them made everything pretty ok.

From Internal Changes to Expanding Networks, WAO’s 2023 in Review > https://blog.weareopen.coop/from-internal-changes-to-expanding-networks-caedad2df312

Optimism Linked to Poor Decision-Making and Lower Cognitive Skills > https://neurosciencenews.com/optimism-cognition-decision-making-25307/

Jezebel, an incisive feminist voice, is shutting down > https://apnews.com/article/jezebel-shutdown-go-media-digital-advertising-c1e97e310aeb36ab2f49b92252b46c05

Maybe I'm witty

found on Street Art Utopia

Oh man, I am so, so happy to announce that Fast Company did, indeed, use my quote about Chuck Norris and Simone de Beauvoir in their publication about returning to the office. I’m not sure who the target audience for such a long read is, but I love that my quote is under a header called “Generational Gripes”.

My main gripe about the narrative around returning to the office is that people are not “talent supply”. Despite the attempts of corporations to stick us all in easily manageable boxes, we are special snowflakes who have varying requirements. Some of us need to be able to chat at the watercooler. Some of us find belonging and purpose while playing foosball in the break room. Some of us need the free tampons in the company bathroom and some of us need the provided desk and equipment.

“Workplace interactions – Around half of neurodivergent employees felt overwhelmed by distractions in the office (49%) compared to 14% for neurotypical employees. Other challenges included being unable to mentally prepare fully for meetings (30%), not feeling valued (25%) or included (18%) or feeling judged by colleagues (19%).” EuropaWire

Others, and listen carefully, others need a lot of time without any other people around to manage their own brains. Others have a hard time being in public on a regular basis. Others need quiet. Others need naps. Others need to be able to go to the grocery store at 11:30am on a Tuesday so that we can get the family shopping done in peace.

There’s a lot of variety in life and “returning to the office” is, beyond corporate BS, also a gendered, neurotypical discussion. It’s not (only) a generational gripe that I have, it’s a feminist, neuro-atypical one.

Fast Company’s 8-point guide for designing an office your workers actually want to return to (paywalled, hence the archive.org link)

Global Study by Tech Giants Reveals Workplace Challenges for Neurodivergent Employees and Calls for Inclusivity > https://news.europawire.eu/global-study-by-tech-giants-reveals-workplace-challenges-for-neurodivergent-employees-and-calls-for-inclusivity/eu-press-release/2023/12/12/10/40/47/126698/

Social Learning: The Heartbeat of Communities and Networks > https://blog.weareopen.coop/social-learning-the-heartbeat-of-communities-and-networks-55a9b3d33e8d

Maybe I need help?

Indeed it would be great if instead of thinking about people as automatons who make the GDP go vroom vroom, we would acknowledge that education is about helping people find actualization. Work is about helping people find meaning and purpose. Society is about helping people find belonging.

So the year is done and so am I. Next year I will worry about wtf I'm doing again. For now, I'm sick and staying in bed.

Have a happy holiday season. I'm here if you need me, just hit reply or give me a call.

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