Lance Greenfield's Blog, page 21
May 18, 2020
Thrilling Delivery Day
Today was a fantastic day and easily my best day, so far, as an Ocado delivery driver.
[image error]It started as I turned up to work shortly after six o’clock with a [sanitised] pack of my three published paperbacks for a fellow driver who had already paid for the books. She wanted the two novels for her mother and the anthology for her own enjoyment.
I set off on my route: Appleshaw, Sutton Scotney, South Wonston, Eastleigh and Southampton.
[image error]However, my thirteenth drop was truly THRILLING! I thought that I recognised the name of my customer, yet I couldn’t quite believe it. When I turned up, I was delighted to be greeted by fellow Swanwicker, Allison Symes. She has been following my exploits since I started the job and was equally delighted that I was finally going to be delivering to her today. We both hope that the next time we meet will be on the first day of the Swanwick Writers’ Summer School on 8th August 2020.
[image error]Could my day get any better? Not really, but I was very happy that my final customer, who I is lucky enough to live close to the berths of the luxury cruise ships in Southampton, gave me an unexpected present. I was interested in one of the products that he’d ordered and asked if I could take a photograph of a bottle of the alcohol free beer that he told me was so good, to act as a reminder so that I might order the same for myself. He told me to take a bottle. How generous is that?
The most exciting part of my round was definitely meeting up with Allison.
Here’s to Swanwick in August!
Cheers m’dears!
Note: Permission granted by Allison to reveal her name.
Garden of Reflection
Major John Buckley RE
My good friend and fellow Sapper, John Buckley, has set himself a tough challenge to raise funds to create a garden of peaceful space in Swinton Barracks, Tidworth, the home of 22 and 26 Engineer Regiments. By the end of May, he will have run 496 km in the month for his worthy cause.
I am very proud of him.
Here, in his own words, is the story behind his challenge.
I’ve always said charity should begin at home, this includes my second home being Swinton Barracks, Perham Down.
Having been stationed on this camp for over 15 years on and off, I thought it only right to give something back to the men and women who serve here. Home to 22 & 26 Engr Regt and soon to be 1 & 15 Signals Regts, my aim is to provide officer’s & soldier’s alike the opportunity to retreat to an area of camp to reflect and have some ‘me time’, especially for those that live within the barracks.
We all have moments where we need time out and reflect and creating a small garden within the barracks will allow this. It will also allow individuals the opportunity to assist in creating this garden having a sense of achievement and contribution.
My challenge is to run everyday in May. Each day represents the date, therefore day 1 is 1km, day 2 is 2km and so on, finishing with 31km on day 31. If my maths are right that will be a staggering 496km for the month(308 miles).
All I ask is my family, friends and colleagues support this worthy cause by donating just £4.96 each. My target is £2000 but the more I achieve the better the garden.
Your support is greatly appreciated.
PLEASE click on this link to his fundraiser and consider making a generous donation.
May 1, 2020
Book Review: The Boy Between Worlds by Annejet van der Zijl
The Boy Between Worlds by Annejet van der Zijl
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The first third of this book is about the background and is almost a history lesson. The pace is extremely slow and somewhat boring. Once I was past this, however, I was drawn in and captured throughout the rest of the book so it is worth your perseverance.
This book is truly an emotional roller-coaster. There were parts of the book that filled me with joy, parts that inspired me and made me feel proud of the achievements of the main characters and parts that made me sob as I read about the cruelty inflicted on human beings by fellow humans.
The consequences of prejudice are well highlighted and horrific. Those who know me well, know my views on prejudice and I have written several articles on the subject which are posted on my blog. What I read in this book just reinforces my views.
I do recommend this book and I urge you to stick with it through the opening chapters. If you do so, you will thank me for the recommendation.
Fishing for Jobs
I can’t believe that it is two years since I spent several early mornings on the London-bound platform of Andover railway station selling my value to the passing commuters. Although no job came out of it, I had many very interesting conversations, some with follow-ups, and I made a few new friends.
Happily, I am now employed and classified as a key worker. My customers certainly appreciate my value these days.
It actually opens a whole new discussion. Which carries more value: senior information technology leader or online supermarket delivery driver?
My job search reminds me of days when I went fishing on the banks of the River Tay at the North Inch in Perth. I used to go out before dawn and spend all day casting my flies out onto the rippling surface of that beautiful river. There were times when I would be there until the early hours of the following morning and my concerned grandfather would come to find me. I had lost all track of time. I was lost in my own wonderful, peaceful world.
It never bothered me if I went for hours without a bite. I was certain that I would eventually run into frenzy of bites and I was usually right.
My last day of full employment was 13th December 2017. Since then, I have tried every channel that I can think of to find myself a new employment. I really need to…
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April 30, 2020
Book Review: Vital Organs by Jo Harthan
Vital Organs by Jo Harthan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
What makes good fiction for me, is that it is believable. This story is very credible.
From the start, it kicks off at a good pace and that tempo is maintained right up to the end. I liked that the main character in the book were well developed early on and continued to be developed throughout. That they all had deep flaws added to my enjoyment.
The climax of the story is very good and contains a lot of tension.
Having the narrative switch from one character to another and from first person to third person added variety and kept it all very much alive.
I would highly recommend this book to all my friends.
April 16, 2020
Happy Thingyan – Myanmar New Year
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Last week, I delivered a grocery order to a lady who lives near to Chippenham. In our conversation, it transpired that she was originally from Myanmar. She was excited about celebrating her country’s New Year holiday on 17th April. Her excitement was tinged with sadness due to the current global heath crisis. For the first time, she will not be able to surround herself with family. However, she intends to send out little home-made treats, especially to the children. I was happy to be supplying her with some of the ingredients for those treats.
So, today, I would like to wish her and all of my Myanmar followers a Happy Thingyan Festival and Myanmar New Year!
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April 6, 2020
Book Review: Monetizing Data – How to Uplift Your Business
Monetising Data: How to Uplift Your Business by Andrea Ahlemeyer-Stubbe
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The Huge Potential Monetary Value of Data is Explained
Great read!
The book reminds us that our own data is a valuable commodity and that a lot of marketing activities and smart home technologies are a direct consequence of the data we are willing to give away in exchange for information, access or a comfortable life.
The book is a rare combination of information put together in one place. It triggers new business ideas around data.
I am looking forward to a third book from these authors.
March 30, 2020
New Ocado Bonus Scheme for Drivers
[image error]Ocado are introducing a very innovative new bonus scheme for their drivers which will add a huge fun factor to their deliveries. The top UK online supermarket believe that it is important that their front line employees enjoy their work as much as possible.
Director of Staff Motivation, Avril Josher, said that the intentions of the scheme are to show appreciation for the Customer Service Team Members (delivery drivers) and to introduce and extra element of interest to their routes.
[image error]“The idea is to award a small reward for every house visited with a name that appears on the list of most common house names. The routes are defined by sophisticated scheduling software and the number of bonus names on any driver’s route on a particular day is pure chance. They won’t know how many they have until they print off their route at the beginning of their shifts.”
A bounty of fifty pence will be awarded every time a driver delivers to any of the following addresses:
Manor Farm
The Bungalow
Conway House
Yew Tree Cottage
Fairview
Springfield
Ivy Cottage
The Laurels
The Old Post Office
The Barn
Church Farm
The Lodge
Hillside
The Old School House
The Rectory
The Croft
Orchard House
The Willows
Mill House
Woodlands
The Haven
The Old Forge
Greenacres
The Gables
Miss Josher told us that the scheme would be run, as a trial, for the whole month of April, starting today.
When asked about her thoughts on the scheme, driver Donna Lapporte, was very enthusiastic. “It will definitely make our rounds more exciting and, as I deliver to at least four of the names on this list on a daily basis, it is going to add more than ten pounds per week to my pay packet.”
Said Touja Dorra, “If I see ‘Church Farm’ as my next drop, I’ll immediately be thinking ‘KER-CHING! FIFTY PENCE MORE!’ This is a great scheme. I love my job at Ocado.”
March 19, 2020
From the Depths of Despair to Road Warrior
First days at ASG – February 2008
On 13th December 2017, my position as EMEA Vice President of Professional Services and Presales at ASG Technologies was made redundant. The given reason was that it was a necessary cost reduction. At the time, I believed that.
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ASG PS Meeting – March 2015
Since then, I have been persuaded that the real reasons were very different. Many of my friends, who are still employed by ASG have commented to me that they are sure that my exit was engineered by somebody with great influence who didn’t want me working for the company anymore. Several facts that seem to support that conclusion.
Nobody else was laid off at that time.
Two weeks before my exit process commenced, I received an email from the second-in-command of the company thanking for my exceptional performance and contribution to the business.
That same senior executive, in a “town hall” conference call, had announced that the company’s finances were now in such a good state that we could ride any storm.
Over my ten years at the company I had continuously delivered improvements, including Sales and Presales training and strategic changes to organisational structure and processes leading to increased profitability.
I was the “go to person” to get things done to such an extent that I had former colleagues calling me for months after my departure to ask me questions as “nobody else seems to have the answers.”
My ex-colleagues still tell me how much they miss me and that “We were only talking about you yesterday.” One of them even told me that he’d always thought of me as part of the DNA of the company.
On the day of my final exit meeting, I was confronted with two very trivial “incidents” that were on my record despite never have been mentioned to me before that time.
By April 2018, just four months after my redundancy date, my role had been re-created and filled. That breaches the rules, but it is hard to prove and not worth the stress.
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Early morning runs in Naples
I do wish that I was still at ASG, contributing to the company’s continued success. From the day that I joined, 1st February 2008, I always envisioned myself as working at the company until the day that I finally retired. I loved my time at ASG and I really miss a lot of my friends and colleagues and the way that we worked so well together.
Unless you’ve been there, it is hard to explain how devastating it is to discover that you have been deceived and betrayed by those whom you trust. I once did a mutual SWOT analysis with a friend who was on my team. He identified ‘trust’ as both a strength and a weakness. He told me that I tend to trust people immediately until they give me good reason not to trust them. Somebody deceived me and that hurts.
However, all of that is behind me now and it is time to move on with my life.
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Touting for jobs at Andover railway station
In the darkest days of the two years that I spent looking for jobs, sending off over 250 applications, I became very upset by the thought that somebody in a lofty position at ASG had been disturbed enough by something that I said or did to them that they saw fit to engineer my removal from the company that I’d loved and served for so many years. That person obviously didn’t have the balls to speak with me about whatever I had said or done. What a shame that I had to suffer for their weakness. There was a time that their action against me drove me to the very brink of suicide.
On that day, it was only good fortune that saved my life. I bumped into an old friend as I walked, full of determination, toward my imminent demise. He held me in conversation for over half an hour, by which time I had returned to my senses enough to question my intentions. He doesn’t know that he saved my life. Perhaps, someday, I shall tell him.
There was a second occasion on which I came very close to suicide. I had got to the point where I was applying for all jobs at any level. I just wanted to work. I had been through the selection process to become a supermarket assistant and had convinced myself that they would give me the job. I received a rejection email. At that point, I came to believe that nobody wanted me or understood the value that I could bring to their business. That rejection email was total rejection of me by everyone. Nobody wanted me!
I made my way up to the railway station and sat on the bench waiting for the westbound train to pull in. I was going to wait until the last second of its approach before I flung myself under its hefty wheels. I would soon be pâté on the line.
The train was twenty minutes late. During those minutes I thought of all the problems that my death would cause for friends and family and for the poor driver of the train that crushed me and the people who would have to clear up the mess. I decided to save them all the trouble.
Phew!
Out of those depths of despair, I have arisen, a new man with all my usual positivity and energy restored.
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Day 3 at Ocado
I have secured employment as a Customer Services Team Member, Delivery Driver, at Ocado, which is officially the top online supermarket in the United Kingdom. I am very proud and happy to be part of the company and the brand. I love getting out on my route, delivering to lots of wonderful, appreciative customers.
The only stress in the job comes when I am running late and I feel that I am letting my customers down if I have to call them and let them know that I will be arriving 30-60 minutes after the end of their scheduled slot. Almost all of them are very understanding and tolerant and are happy to receive their groceries. Nevertheless, I can’t get over the feeling that I am letting them down and that I am not providing the best possible service for them.
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Deliveries take me everywhere!
The money is not great, but I have a job. I am occupied. I have exhausted any savings that I had before I was made redundant and I am having to top up my income by drawing down on my pension funds. I still have an outstanding amount on my mortgage and my car loan, but I will survive.
I have lots of new friends and I am working for a great company who appreciate my contribution.
In the current world health crisis, people appreciate the essential service that is brought to them by delivery of their groceries to their doorsteps. Over the past few days, my customers have told me that I am a “road warrior” and a “superhero.” They are full of gratitude and compliments. I am only doing my job but such appreciation makes me feel fantastic.
What have I learned from these experiences?
Suicide is never a good solution. It hurts too many people and it is the end for the person who commits it.
Something else will always come along, eventually.
Patience is a virtue.
Life is good.
I have truly risen from the depths of despair to become a road warrior.
Related posts:
Redundancy: New Opportunities
Fishing for Jobs
Back to Work!
Lance Saves the Universe!
March 18, 2020
Lance Saves the Universe!
One valuable lesson that I learned from reading so much Sci-fi in my youth is that, when the universe is threatened by an alien invasion, the way to deal with it is to identify and destroy the source.
Citizens rejoice! I will save you.
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I found the source of the virus and I have isolated all remaining supplies in my chambers. Over the coming days, I intend to eradicate all traces of this evil liquid.
Now, where’s that bottle-opener?
