Coming at once

It's felt like a stressful day; one wracked with being spread too thinly and therefore feeling like I'm underperforming on everything. Funny how the social construct of 'going to work' can be both brilliant and stressful, a thousand times each, all in the space of a day.

With the best will in the world it's not easy to spend only a week between long trips. I must get better at balancing the excitement of travel with a realistic workload, however I have concluded it really does just take a long time to complete any task satisfactorily and well in this world, whether that is cashing a cheque at the bank (queue was too long and machines were broken so I had to leave) or writing a funding proposal.

I am plagued by the thought that for the workforce to achieve goals and actually be cost-effective and productive for whatever sphere an organisation is in, given how long it takes to navigate personalities, technology, processes and politics in the workplace, it takes more than a standard 7.5 hour day. I'm not talking about competition for promotions or between colleagues, although that is surely a prominent aspect of being at work in some sectors. I mean that in many cases capacity seems so unmatched with goals and the costs needed to meet them, which leads to extremely high running costs and crippling inefficiencies, which are both passed onto the customer. I think I sound like an impatient communist.

I finished a report (almost), had an altercation with a bus driver, ran to London for a meeting, got into a pickle with an off-peak ticket, had an altercation with the barrier guy, worked in a café while I waited the three hours for peak time to pass, advised the couple next to me to smash the corporate machine when they meekly accepted the fact that ketchup wasn't free, eventually got back and resumed work at my desk. I managed to complete all critical South Sudan paperwork ahead of Indonesia next week, but I was lingering in the office until gone 11, listening to the howls of boozers out enjoying the city centre. Cycling home through them when sirens are blaring and drunkards stagger into your path, is always an experience to savour.