#365of25 Archives - Page 21 of 26

Just hit publish

Committing to writing a blog post every day has had some really unexpected benefits. As discussed in a previous post, one of these benefits is that I constantly reflect on my learnings throughout the day to find something to write about.

Another benefit that I realized today is that it has forced me to let go of perfection. Because I’m sending out a post every day, some might not meet my own standards.

Sometimes it feels like I should write more in depth, more thought through work. But I have to shake this feeling. I have to allow myself to feel uncomfortable.

It’s scary. But it’s getting easier. The momentum behind writing every day is pushing me to be more confident in my writing ability and in myself.

And I’m regularly surprised when people enjoy a post when I was uncertain about it.

So even if it isn’t perfect…

Just hit “publish”

Image was taken on a walk down the Liesbeek River today.

This post was inspired by Seth Godins blog today, which you can find here

Blog 47/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 23, 2017 | Permalink

The Sparks

We coined the term in 2012 on the Graca Machel lawns on lower campus UCT. I was sitting with a close friend, and was struggling to describe a certain group of people.

These people were special. These people brought an unmatched level of conversation and debate. These people had the potential to change the world.

These were “The Sparks”

The Sparks are a unique breed. They’re the ones that combine excitement, passion and fierce resolve to the worlds most pressing issues.

Over my time at the University of Cape Town I have identified a number of Sparks. Some are friends. Some are colleagues. Some are students. And they appear in the most unexpected places

When you meet another spark, the energy flies. Your conversation ranges from the hyper local issues to global issues. You explore all sorts of topics. And you reach a mutual understanding that you’re both there to make a difference.

Over the last few years I’ve met a handful of Sparks. And I’m on the lookout for more.

Cause they’re the ones that will change the world.

Image was taken while talking to one of the original Sparks, Jess. I can’t wait to see how she revolutionizes South Africa

A special shoutout to Jared and Mark who were with me while I was writing this blog.

Blog 46/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 22, 2017 | Permalink

UCT: where it all began

Today I was walking with a group of friends, most of whom didn’t know each other. But there was a single connecting factor between all of us: the University of Cape Town.

As I head towards the final chapter in my UCT career I’ll begin writing more reflective blog posts about this institution. Some will be critiques, some will be praises. Some will be personal, some will be institutional. And some will explore the current strategies, leadership and developmental pathway of the University.

I have lots to say about the place I’ve been a part of for almost 7 years. And I’ll get there. But today I took a moment to notice how much I’d learnt and grown here. How much I had changed. And how almost all my friends are linked to UCT in some ways.

I realised that in many ways, this was where it all began.

Image is of Sarah Baartman Hall (formerly Jameson Hall) on Christmas Day last year

Blog 45/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 21, 2017 | Permalink

Building up to that moment

Your name gets called out.

You walk onto the stage.

(You try not to stumble)

You hand your hood over.

You kneel.

Dr Max Price taps you on the head. And shakes your hand.

You turn around.

Your hood is placed on you.

You walk off the stage

You pick up your degree.

Students visualise this moment from the first time they set foot on campus. Some have already been thinking about it while in high school. In every test, every assignment, every lecture and every exam, you build towards this one moment: your graduation.

It is the magical moment where you attain your degree. It is the most special moment of your university career.

Except it’s not.

The magic happened before then. The magic was getting to lectures when you didn’t feel like it. It was pulling all nighters to finish projects and essays. It was pushing through exams year after year ( and sometimes during protests).

It was fighting the university system when it tried to exclude you. It was having the courage to start over when you failed. It was battling mental health problems every day and still, somehow, managing to survive.

The moment the world sees

The moment of graduation is special. But it’s special because it is a recognition of growth. Of learning. Of struggle. Of perseverance.

It’s a recognition of all those other special moments when no one else was watching.

And now, the whole world sees you.

I’d like to have a special shoutout here for Tiisetso Malinga, who is my mentee, my mentor and one of my closest friends. Tii, you have done the most incredible thing to get through this degree. You fought so hard. And in the end you won. We are all so proud of what you have done. Congratulations!

Image is from before Tiisetso’s graduation ceremony today.

Finally, a quote that I’ve used before but it fits this situation perfectly:

“When you achieve your dreams, it’s not so much what you get, it’s who you become in achieving them”

Henry David Thoreau

Blog 44/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 20, 2017 | Permalink

Five years forward, five years back

Humans are generally quite bad at predicting and visualising the future, particularly over longer periods. We lack the ability to imagine the vast changes both on a personal and global level.

What we usually do is see the future as a slight variation of the present , with minor improvements. It’s a type of heuristic or bias where we use today’s state as our basis of prediction instead of building up the future from first principles.

This came up in a discussion with a close friend yesterday. We were talking about how she doesn’t ever think she’ll achieve certain goals of hers. That they’re too far out of her reach. And at the same time, she was worried that she hadn’t achieved enough to date.

Into the past

A tool that I like to use to overcome this feeling is to pretend to have a discussion with myself from 5 years ago. I try imagine what he’d feel if I told him what I was doing today. And I realise that, in this case, 2012 Rowan would be blown away by 2017 Rowan. The stuff that I am doing now would be entirely inconceivable to him then, and he would not understand how it happened.

In fact, I recently read a blog post from 2012 Rowan that outlined some things that he would like to achieve in 10 years time. And I’ve already achieved almost all of them.

Back to the future

Using this same logic, I imagine myself from 5 years time coming back and telling me all the stuff that he is doing in 2022. I imagine having my mind completely blown, in the same way 2012 me would have his mind blown by 2017 me.

This is quite reassuring in a way. Because I don’t know what 2022 me will be doing. But I know that it’ll probably be something completely out of my realm of possibility today.

Not linear but not the point

This tool uses a linear approach to prediction, meaning that my expected growth is estimated to be the same as my past growth. Of course, it may not be linear and could be tapering off or even become exponential.

The point of the exercise isn’t the predicting. The idea is to find comfort in understanding that we cannot know the future. However, what I do know is that it will almost certainly be different to what I can imagine. And I know for sure that current me will definitely be proud of what I’ve achieved going into 2023.

Image was taken almost exactly five years ago. If you look carefully, you can see my little brother lying face down in the middle of the field. I think he was running across the field and then just got over it and dropped down in a pile.

Blog 43/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 19, 2017 | Permalink

Scattered Across the World

I get a little jealous when I find out two people have been friends since they were in pre school or primary school. For example, the other day I saw a friend post a happy birthday message saying “Happy 20 years of friendship” for a girl she’d known since she was 5. They’d been through primary school, high school and university together and now work at the same company.

Being from Zim means that the chances that a friendship lasted that long was rare. Almost every December from 1999 onwards there was a farewell party for friends. In 2000 it was the Costas and the Robinsons, in 2001 it was the Adamsons, in 2002 it was the Van Bredas and the Mannings, in 2003 it was the Fedettos and in 2004 it was the Spazzolis. Most people ended up in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK, with some in other parts of Europe and America.

We moved to Joburg, and from the outset I struggled to make friends. By 2008 I had a good group of them but at the end of the year 1 had moved to Holland, 1 moved schools and 1 was on exchange. So the process started all over.

In 2011 I moved to Cape Town and there was another shake up. And the process started again. And in 2014/2015, there was a mass exodus at the end of varsity and, you guessed it, it started again.

My sadness (and jealousy) around this is that there are no people in my current circles have shared memories and common experiences with me from when I grew up. No one knows what Highlands School was like, no one remembers Chisipite Shops or Borrowdale Road.

I am fortunate that I’m still close with my high school friends. But even then, two live in Joburg and one just moved to Sedgefield.

Of my university friends, a few are still around. But most are in Joburg, some are in America and some are in the UK.

The Upside of Scattering

Having friendship circles that experience high levels of flux isn’t all bad. It means that I have been able to renew my friendships depending on my phase of life. This, in turn, has taught me how to form friendships quickly. The coolest thing about it though is having friends in so many countries. It means that I can visit New York or London or Lisbon or San Francisco or Sydney or Nairobi and there will be someone I know there. The forces of globalization and government instability may have shuffled people around the world. And it does mean that there are very few friends around from my distant past. But it also means that my neighbourhood is global, and there will always be someone I know nearby.

Image was taken last week at Babylonstoren on our adventure out in Franschhoek. Two people in this picture live in Joburg and one just moved to Sedgefield. But I know I’ll see them all again soon soon 🙂 Afterthought: modern technology has made it possible to sustain these friendships wherever we are in the world. A friend is never more than a video call or a voice note away 🙂

Blog 42/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 18, 2017 | Permalink

My Big Juggling Act

I’m often asked how I’m able to handle so many different projects at the same time. For example, over the last few months I’ve been lecturing on two courses and doing my masters at UCT. I’m also working on two startups, undertaking a big economic impact evaluation and planning a major entrepreneurship event for next year.

The secret is that I only juggle two or three projects at any one time. Often some will remain on standby until a slot opens up. Switching between them happens on a week by week basis, depending on what is important and urgent.

An Opening in the Juggling

After signing off on the two courses last week, a bit of space has opened up. And I’m going to fill this with my Masters thesis. I’d been hoping to free up this space about two months ago, but a delay in the economic impact evaluation meant I couldn’t. So I’m left with quite a short space of time to write it.

Over the next two months or so, my blog is likely to have reflections on my thesis. My topic is centred on the relationship between mental health and economic outcomes (though it’s going to evolve as I go). I’ll also make the final thesis available on the blog for everyone to see

It’s going to be the biggest project I’ve ever worked on. And I can’t wait to pick it up and start juggling.

Image was taken at the University of Oxford earlier this year. We were staying in this street during the Oxford Global Challenge. We were runners up in the event (I’ll post a blog about this soon).

Blog 41/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 17, 2017 | Permalink

The Sugar Cube Wall

At this years Brightest Young Minds conference (which I still have to write a full post about) there was a “Sugar Cube” wall. On this wall were envelopes with the name of every one of the participants and organisers. And on the side there was a stack of cards and pens for writing.

The idea was to write a “sweet” message to someone who you’d met at the conference. After writing it you could include your name or leave it anonymous, and then pop it in to their envelope. These were then handed out at the final gala dinner, with the condition that they could only be opened when we got home.

These sugar cubes provided such a beautiful twist to the event. They allowed for a very sincere, very kind communication between the participants. It also enabled deep reflection, both on the part of the writer and the receiver, about themselves and others. And finally, it provided a beautiful self-esteem and confidence boost to the receivers.

Real Life Sugar Cubes

I’ve stuck all the sugar cubes up in my bedroom, as they act as a reminder of the amazing people I met and the experience we shared. It also helps fight off the odd bought of imposter syndrome (which seems to be showing up quite a bit recently).

Beyond this, it has made me realise the importance of recognising people and telling them how you feel about them. Since the conference, I’ve made an active effort to tell people when I think they’re amazing. In some cases, I’ve left anonymous sugar cubes, and in others I’ve sent sneaky voice notes to remind them how great I think they are.

It’s a small thing to do, but it can have a massive impact on a person. So don’t forget to leave a sugar cube whenever you can.

Image was taken at the conference. Unfortunately I don’t have a picture of the full sugar cube wall but you can see it in the top right corner of this pic.

Blog 41/365. Read more about my #365of25 journey here

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Published by rspazzoli on December 16, 2017 | Permalink