Sharon Burton
I arrived in New Zealand after a 13 hour red eye flight. The good news is I slept 6 of the 13 hours so I arrived nearly functional. I was picked up at the airport and whisked to the Author-it headquarters in Auckland, where I started my first full day.
I met everyone – none of the names stuck – and grabbed a workspace. And then the information dump began. I’ve had more information shoved into my head in the last 3 days than I think a month of graduate school. And I’m actually remembering it, which is sort of amazing!
This morning, I’m in Wellington, which is the southern tip of the north island, for a conference. I’m working the booth with 2 other people, both of whom know way more than I do. So more learning, as I watch how they show products and talk about them. I’m super excited to see how and what they do so I can learn.
My impressions of Kiwi-land so far? It’s a lovely place. Very green, which for a So Cal girl is very strange. But it’s got rolling hills, water, super nice people and they all drive on the wrong side of the road, which I’m going to attempt Monday. I feel we should warn this very nice nation before I’m given the keys to a rental car. This could go terribly wrong very fast!
I’m delighted to be working with this smart and passionate group of people. It’s an honor and I hope I can contribute to the effort in a meaningful way. I see so much promise with these tools and so many way to make it easier to manage content.
OK – almost time to meet the guys and get the booth set up!
Congrats on the new gig! Working with smart, passionate people is always the best part of any great job.
FWIW, I found I adapted easily to driving on the “other” side of the road. For me, it was more unnerving being a passenger in the front seat — sitting in what I think of as the driver’s seat, but having no control — Gah!
You’re going to do wonderfully. We are all looking forward to seeing what you can do in the new job. It’s going to be very cool!