Keep on swimming.......
Sophie Metcalf, MA, MBA, Chartered FCIPD.
Head Of Human Resources | Head of People | Director of Human Resources | Director of People | Chief People Officer | Finalist for Northern Power Women "Mentor of the Year"
Keep on swimming............
Those that know me well know I am a huge fan of both Marvel and Disney Pixar. Apart from having strong female characters I love the fact that stories designed for children always carry some life lessons. I was watching Finding Nemo a couple of weeks ago and (apart from the bit at the end when I always cry when they are reunited) I came away reflecting on Dory, the stalwart friend of Nemo.
Most people know that I've been studying for the last ten years as well as working full time and I'm in the closing stages of completing my CIPD L7. I'm six weeks away from getting fully qualified and completing my third Masters (and two degrees) in ten years. I am so close to getting it done and to be honest I'm absolutely fed up with it. I'm exhausted, I'm sick of reading "critically" instead of for pleasure (I'm a real bookworm), not having time for my art and missing time in the gym because I'm writing assignments. Add that to a full time crazy busy job and I'm a bit of a grump at the moment.
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What resonated with me about Dory was she made it simple - don't think about it too hard, just keep putting one foot (or fin) in front of the other and you get to where you need to be. There are always people that will help along the way (never ever forget the people that support you) but if you stop trying to move forward, you go backwards. It might feel like it will take forever but nothing in life worth having was ever gained easily.
So 6 weeks, 42 days, 1008 hours or 60480 hours, however you want to measure it. At the end of it I have a week booked for somewhere I've never been (not quite the Great Barrier Reef that Nemo and Dory travelled) but hot and cocktails on tap with a book I actually want to read (rather than have to read). When I get the degree certificate all that pain and stress will be forgotten but I know that I will have earned it.
And by the way, if anybody ever tells you that getting CIPD qualified is easy or not a proper degree you have my permission to tell them to stick it where the sun doesn't sun. After five degrees in varying subjects, this has been the hardest and most indepth degree I've ever done and I have nothing but admiration for anybody undertaking it.
VP-People & Culture Leader @Allen Digital| Ex-Unilever| XLRI, INSEAD
2 年Loved this Sophie Metcalf MCIPD, FLPI
People Partner
2 年I ?? this. 'Keep on putting one foot in front of the other'.. so true. . I guess we can all be guilty of sometimes being blind to the power of simplicity. Thanks for sharing ??
HR Manager | CIPD Qualified
2 年Well done!!!
Learning and Development Coach at Riverside Training
2 年Well done Sophie. I hear you. The hardest thing I have ever had to do. I completed my dissertation in 10 weeks, 5 months early as I was having a baby two months after the deadline date it was brutal. Three years of working full time and studying every weekend every autumn to spring was so hard…..but what an achievement. All done now. Never to be revisited again! ??
HR Specialist, Business Owner and soon to be RAF veteran. PG Dip, HR Geek, HR Ninja and all around people person
2 年Great post. I recently completed my CIPD L7, dispite the challenges of Covid, home schooling, full time working and a pregnancy that left me permanently hugging the toilet ??. Completing it seemed like an unachievabke goal at times and absolutely not an easy one. Safe to say it’s something I am really proud of and glad I kept swimming ??