The Bureau

Something unexpected and lovely happened to me recently.

I've been working closely with a team of novice writers for the past four months: writing briefs for them, reviewing their work, and trying to comment on their lessons in a way that encourages them to produce better material, rather than become discouraged and petulant (no mean feat, as I have discovered again and again over the years).

This job has been made harder by the fact that I am in a different continent and time zone to all three, and so my comments are generally delivered via the impersonal medium of email or text chat. With one writer in particular I had become a little worried. My lengthy emails to her, delivered in what I hoped was a bright, encouraging tone, were met with curt, perfunctory responses. Sure, she always did what I asked, and her work certainly improved over the months, but I wondered if she was becoming disillusioned by the process of writing.

Then I heard on the grapevine that she was leaving for another job. I wrote to her to say how much I thought her work had improved in the short time we'd worked together, and that I hoped she would consider working in materials development again in future.

No response.

Weeks passed, and I discovered that her new job was in a different part of the same company, working on e-learning materials. Then, out of the blue, I received a lovely email from her thanking me for being 'incredibly supportive' of her work, and for providing constructive criticism that, she thought, had helped her 'to better myself as a writer'.

I meet a lot of young teachers and writers in my industry, and if I see potential, I try and encourage them to stick with it, and to devote time and energy to developing their skills. But the mill turns fast, and it's rare that I get to see the results of my encouragement. People move on: to new schools, new companies, new projects; feedback is rare, and so to receive it, and for it to be positive - these are wonderful things.

It did get me thinking though - do I always thank those who have helped me to grow and to develop as I've travelled along my path? It's easy to give praise to those below you in the food chain, but we often forget to thank those above us - the ones whose job it is (or should be) to pass on the knowledge. It wasn't until I left a particular company, for instance, that I realised just how much my boss for the previous five years had taught me. I guess because we didn't always see eye-to-eye it never occurred to me just how much I owed him, but when I told him I was leaving, I suddenly found myself giving him a bear hug and thanking him profusely. On reflection, I wish I'd thanked him earlier - not because it would have made my life easier, but because managing people is a difficult and sometimes lonely job, and people need to hear when they are doing it well.

So the point of this rather long ramble is to suggest that you have a think about how you got where you are today, and to ask yourself if you've properly thanked those that helped you get there. Go on, make someone's day.