I had a conversation with Will Symons today to gather his thoughts on my planned travels. And I'm so glad I did! The last week and a bit for me (Christmas break) has been a mixture of pondering and reading as well as intense staring at computer screens trying to figure out the hidden mechanics of piecing together a website. What it hasn't involved much of just yet is the opportunity to step away from the inner cocophany of my own brain. Having the opportunity to talk to others does wonders for a brain reset.
Will Symons is National Practice Leader, Sustainability and Resilience, AECOM Australia. I had met Will very briefly in passing once before - a 2 minute chat at a conference in Singapore - and so today's catch up was really our first proper interaction. Will carefully listened to my explanations of my plans, my developing interest in cities, frustrations in not being able to effectively influence conversation and action around cities, and my efforts to negotiate the breadth of literature out there to try and identify an area of focus. His response was wonderfully insightful, and exactly what I needed to hear right now. Here are some of my favourite takeaways...
Golden point one: Not to worry about picking a specific topic before I head off on my travels. It otherwise risks being superficial and forced. Rather, pick a theme, which I can use as a banner to guide my early travels, commit to a research programme and make it an objective to identify an area of interest in my first three months. Make my first city one that exposes me to a range of varied opinions and then follow my research interests.
Golden point two: New York. Will recommended New York as a potential first city, particularly if I have an interest in Resilience. New York is the headquarters of the Rockefeller Foundation, the 100 Resilient Cities program, C40 Cities, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and the City of New York is also the first city to have released a resiliency strategy under the 100RC program. New York has definitely a lot going for it! I'll have to think on this a little more though as I was originally thinking of starting my trip somewhere in Europe. Will assures me that I won't be short of diverse opinions in New York, which was my main concern. Something to think about.
Golden point three: When I return, and I'm sitting with a drink in a pub with my friends, what do I want to be feeling and thinking? I've been asked many times what I want to do at the end of this journey. I find that particular question very tough to answer right now with any degree of honesty. Really because I don't know what I don't know, and any description resembling a job sounds far too narrow for it to be a credible answer. Will's question however was a surprising and delightful alternative to this oft posed question. The reason I love this question so much is because when facing a pivotal moment in life, I find you don't quite know what the answer is, but you do have a very strong sense of what I'm missing. Its an overwhelming feeling more than anything. I know that at the end of this journey I would like to have gathered enough knowledge to be able to effectively shake up conversations and the status quo, and inspire and encourage people to do better and to think bolder. I would like to be thinking about the next project or venture bubbling away, excited by the opportunities and possibilities of uniting the global network of 'Urban Avengers' that I would have discovered on trip. The question of what will do when I get back and what sort of impact do I want to make still stands, but for the moment, in terms of life decisions, I think it is important that I let the question of 'what do I want to be feeling and thinking at the end of all this' guide me.
Golden point four: Let things percolate. Probably the most valuable of all advice! After all the reading and conversations with people, Will's advice was to let it sit for a little while, reflect and see what connections form. I think this is really all about creating space for oneself to just be. I know my ultimate percolation time is when I walk my dog Jessie. Lucky Jessie is going to be enjoying lots of morning runs and walks in the park these next few months!
Key takeaways.
- Pick an overarching theme to guide my travels
(...particularly valuable in communicating my vision to others so they know how to help) - New York or somewhere less well known?
(Need to get my giant world map out and start thinking about first cities!) - Be clear about who I want to be and where I want to be. Be protective of this and let this guide my decisions.
- Stress less and trust my brain cells to work their magic and connect the dots.
Have you planned for a lifechanging adventure? What are your tips on gearing up for the big journey?
Hit me up with your thoughts and ideas!
x Katrie.