Issue #18

Weekly evaluation inspiration for...

Non-profits who DARE

Hi! I'm Allison and I help organizations use data they already have to improve programs and change systems. And when I was a kid, I used to try to beat my own time reading the newest RL Stine Fear Street book because I'm super nerdy like that (I was generally under 30 minutes).

Back in the BC (before children) times, I used to read voraciously. I rarely had a book on the go for more than a day or two. I would just hunker down and read the whole thing in one sitting. I'm lucky to be able to process and retain information pretty quickly, so this worked well for me.

Then things changed. Now, between school, work, and family demands, this is what my reading time generally looks like:

I love all of the other reading that I get to do, but this very small amount of "me" reading time has caused me to do some adjusting in terms of how I read. So I'm celebrating finally finishing The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker, a book I started last summer.

Based on the first couple of chapters, I knew I would learn so much from this book that I used it in my headshots last August (the colour scheme also matched). And I brought it with me to the kids' dance classes every Saturday - eventually in a ziplock bag after a run-in with a leaky water bottle. I also stole spare moments between meetings to read a few pages out on the patio.

Often, when I work with organizations, they want to do the sprint like how I used to read. Have the one big conversation to figure out their goals. Just do the survey and figure out the rest after. But when you want something to matter, and especially to stick, you really do have to slow things down and savour the process.

Are you a sprinter or a savourer?