REWARDS, conveyance, and bugbears - looking at the 'messy' process of getting things done

PLEASE comment on what you do as a reward - share your practice!!!!!!!!!


REWARDS, conveyance, and bugbears - looking at the 'messy' process of getting things done

Conveying information is a skill that we practice all the time. What I mean by conveyance is the passing on of thoughts and information. I am borrowing the term from the house market, where it is more about transferring property. Conveyance is about sharing practice.

It is a rare occasion when I think I have communicated things really well. However practice makes perfect... Conveyance takes experience, 'doing it' or 'trying it out',  to do well - so writing or speaking with others more helps us to be clear (clarity) and to convey meaning in what we say. Receiving and responding to feedback helps.

Proof reading is essential for me as my first drafts can be rather murky or the images used not well planned to convey meaning. I sometimes have to have 2nd or 3rd goes and re-think imagery. I love it when I get it right though, whether the process has been easy or hard.

My bugbears are when people do not practice improving their skills - BUT finding ways to get past the road blocks is difficult! Another bugbear is organisation - - it is really good to label files and documents so that they make sense. I personally like to alphabetise - it is a habit from coordinating short courses. Disorganised information needs to be sorted. I make mistakes, but I do not like them. I am more tolerant of the mistakes of others than my own. Does this sound familiar? Mistakes can sometimes indicate more practice is needed but the creative professionals I just heard speak at the conference I went to about creative businesses said not to be afraid of mistakes because they were a part of working creatively. I will remember that statement and put it into my practice.

REWARDS - the message here is spending your time on your BAPP work, your final year of university, do not forget to reward yourself!

Sweets? Music? Time watching a film? Lunch? An exercise or yoga class? A new gadget? Having success with comments is a great reward. Talking with others on the course is a reward - people have given you a gift of time - and that gives a great emotional boost. Chocolate we know about. Finally the exec from the Watershed in Bristol (from the conference I went to) suggested beer as the lubricant of progress in shared creative endeavours. Many creative and cultural professionals in the audience agreed with her approach.

In continued professional development you need to develop mechanisms to reward yourself and your colleagues so that the work makes sense. Finding the time to incorporate learning into your routine is often challenging, so find the knowledge and understanding that is important to what you do. BAPP(Arts) is a university course so of course there will be a qualification at the end of the process.

So write an action list. Write down some easy to do things as well as difficult, then reward your efforts.


This was originally written on the late on the way home on the train and came out a bit harshly - I used my Draw ap to add some pictures - but hope through editing it has lightened up a bit!