I am so not looking forward to tonight’s Big Rowers’ Meeting. First of all, it’s a meeting, and I’m not getting paid for it. I don’t especially mind meetings (well, if they’re reasonably productive or amusing) during the workday, but after that I am in a meeting-free mental zone. Second, it will be a big meeting, or at least should be if we’re going to get consensus, and any meeting of more than 5-6 people is useless, almost by definition. Rather, you can poll for ideas, and you can disseminate news, but you can’t get anything done. Third, the people who are pushing this one are, in my opinion, a significant part of the problem (in fairness, they think the same about me) and there will be no productive way to say so. I may attempt to sneak in the idea that we should avoid forming cliques in order to build team spirit in the larger group, if I can.
A lot of this time will be spent analyzing intangibles ("How can we improve morale and make this more fun?") and the whole thing will go on twice as long as it should. Three times as long if Dr. Coach shows up. He’s a rowing coach who’s also a researcher, and tends to go into lecture mode at the catch of an oar (which, in our sport, is far more frequent than the drop of a pin).
Still, I will go, because to stay away would be to look like a non-team player and to miss any chance of doing some good, and I will attempt to keep my mouth shut as long as possible, and I will attempt to demonstrate Cheerfulness. I would insert a quote from Puddleglum, or possibly Eeyore, here, if I had the appropriate books at hand.
And there won’t even be beer.
Posted by dichroic at May 31, 2001 04:31 PM