clapperAs my colleagues are all returning from their holidays,

And a wonderful warm dry summer in Norfolk turns to Autumn overnight,

And I get drenched getting off the train at 9 in the evening and drive home in the dark,

And I’m 6 weeks since my last holiday and 4 weeks until my next one,

And my bank holiday weekend was spent with a houseful of friends with kids visiting beaches, zoos and funfairs.

So maybe I’m feeling a touch weary as I head off for an exciting day, to do something I’ve never done before. To see our TV ad being shot and add my twopenneth to the proceedings.

I met the crew, who explained how it all works and what would be happening. Then me being me, I thought I’d slip quietly into the background, not too noticeable with stars and film crews, extras and producers around. Little did I know.

I was introduced to our star, I even managed to make him laugh…..

Then someone suggested we sit around the monitor so we could watch and input into the filming, how exciting.

At some point, as we all sat down, it became obvious that the big purple velvet armchair, conspicuously placed amidst all the foldaway chairs, had been put there especially for me. Worth adding at this point we were under a canopy on a high street in a busy London suburb. So much for slinking into the background!

There I sat, feeling extremely self conscious in my big purple armchair, making my suggestions, sharing my thoughts and ideas, all to the sighs of the long suffering producer, who obviously knew better but humoured me anyway. Comfy as my big purple armchair was, I felt like a lemon, and I’m sure I was a source of amusement to many on the busy high street.

Maybe that’s what all the long days and hard slog is for, to be important enough to get the big purple armchair…..

Never for me!

I’m truely excited about the ad, I loved being part of it and learning and adding to my life experiences, and I hope when I see the first cut next week it’s something me and my team will feel proud of.

In the same way I feel proud of our relationships with brokers and partners, love spending time with my teams, love the fact that I learn something new everyday, love closing a deal or winning some business, love fixing a problem and making a difference. In any surroundings, in any office, in any environment, on any chair, it really doesn’t matter to me.

So what I learnt about myself is that there are so many things that matter to me about being me, but I’m just not a big velvet purple armchair sort of girl.

Janice