I was accepted onto AP connect whilst on maternity and when I returned I was asked to catch up. The overwhelm was more overwhelming than an overwhelming overwhelm you have ever seen! I had a frantic call with one of the programme leads to catch me up and as brilliant as that was I was very much overwhelmed. Like I said my immediate team had been brilliant and my colleague invited me in to what he was doing and slowly I was grasping the part I could play. Then I was asked to go to a full day conference for AP connect in Birmingham, not local! I'm not going to lie, the stress of juggling baby, toddler, work and travel meant I was exhausted long before the day! The day came and the most horrendous weather came (people trapped in floods as in trapped in shopping centres) and all I wanted to do was go home. But my colleague was a real pro at managing and helping me through my wobbles and off we went.
I arrived to meet Dr Lou Mycroft and a hug. A real hug, then and there I could have quite easily broken down and needed a million people to piece me back together. The day was brilliant from then on in. Power and influence analysis of our teams and organisations. How can we, as APs, lead and influence? Where can we research and reflect on our practice or the practice we are observing in others? What are the elements of an AP role? Then I met the thinking environment. Where everyone thinks as equals. Role, rank and ego are left at the door. We used it to explore an issue an AP was having and how we might help them resolve it. It was there, in that moment, that I knew why I was on AP connect. I was there to use my voice to help others, that was my role, and AP connect was giving me the tools to do that.
My confidence grew as I had new tools to adopt when I returned. It grew even more when APs asked for video calls with me to share what I was doing at our college and other APs wanted to learn from us. My confidence grew in that I knew I had a network of people that I could ring and ask that daft question to. The questions I didn't dare ask at work! Also the questions where I could anticipate my colleges response and actually I wanted to know another college's response to use in driving that conversation at work. I began using social media. As a total novice my colleague created a team account for us. Told you he was great at helping me. My confidence was growing but no way was it high enough to do social media, what did I have to share that was of note?
Social media grew and that network of colleges grew. As did my confidence again. AP connect had sparked something in me. Sparked so much that when Google innovator applications came around I put one in, me, I put an application in! I was selected (there were 75 ish globally that year) had I not done Google innovator I would never have ended up working in EdTech as a freelancer and had I not done AP connect I would never have applied for Google innovator! Social media grew again from this and I learned about #JoyFE. I became part of JoyFE. Actually without realising I had met some of JoyFE face to face at AP connect in Birmingham!
JoyFE is a group of educators changing education, focussed on bringing joy. Weekly, the thinking environment happens in an ideas room. That Wednesday weekly ideas room was the place I could explore some of my ideas, how I wanted to do things at work, and others would help shape and form ideas. Sometimes people wanted to collaborate on ideas and next thing I knew I was in other colleges speaking and or training on maths or EdTech. I wouldn't have been able to do this had I not joined JoyFE and I wouldn't have heard of nor had the confidence to join were it not for AP connect.
We then arrive in 2022 (I feel like 2020-2022 blur and merge for me) and I was taking the decision to leave my college and go freelance. As a nervous soul this was a huge deal. But what I knew was that my values didn't align with the work I was being asked to do. I knew that others valued my opinions externally. I knew that I had changed what I could at college and that I could have wider impact as a freelancer. How did I know all these things? I knew them because I had learned from AP connect about influence and power. I was able to recognise my high influence externally, low influence internally and the power of my college and the limited ability I had to make any more changes. I had learned to find my voice. I had learned on AP connect the power of networks and collaboration. So that was it freelance was the life for me.
Early in my freelance days Joss from Touch Consulting (delivery partner on AP connect) called me to ask me to work with Touch Consulting. Not only was this a yes as it was one of my first interested parties but it was an easy yes as I knew my values aligned. We worked on some projects and I was eternally grateful to be working with a team that held the same values and worked in a joyful manner. Then I was asked to work on AP connect. Me, a graduate of the programme, to now facilitate it. What a perfect circle. I often say AP connect made me, me! I could now share this with new APs.
My mentees were from all over the UK and we happily bundled straight in to easful conversations. I am a person who if a DM comes in I get quite stressed. Yet the DMs from mentees were joyful. Me, they were asking, me for ideas and support. Of course I would love to help. 6/7pm phone calls to help APs navigate tricky situations. Facilitating the Festival Fridays schedule and booking inspirational speakers to share, all joyful experiences.
But this is where AP connect is truly brilliant. What did I learn as a facilitator on the programme? I learned that the stress I feel in time pressure situations dissippates when values align. If what you are doing, is really helping someone, I don't mind if that's taken my evening, made me break off from a project to take a call or led me to an email chain of epic proportions. It doesn't cause me stress when it is helping someone else. I also learned that if you ask, people often say yes. I approached some big names for the festival Fridays workshops and everyone said yes to me. They said yes because they too could see the values of AP connect. The values that everyone is learning collaboratively always.
This year's mentees projects ranged from coaching at work to embedding maths to action research. I adored and absorbed it all! One mentee made specialist resources for students with additional needs. All these APs were, and always, go the extra mile. So it is sad that AP connect has ended, sad that I will no longer be involved, but that is a selfish sad. It hasn't ended as a way of working, networks are established, slack channels are launched, APs want to and will keep connecting and collaborating. APs are still and will continue to drive change in their organisations. Us old mentors are only a DM away. That collaborative rhizomatic way of working continues when values align.
I firmly belief AP connect made me who I am today. Showing me where my values lie, giving me the tools to make changes. Helping me find my voice and grow in confidence. I am very pleased I was able to play a small part this year and set others on this path too. Long live AP connect.
