harlekins spirit

Digital Punk

What comes to your mind on the subject of the largest_online_retailer_whose_name_must_not_be_mentioned? The NZZ (Neue Züricher Zeitung) says on 16.05.2021: ‘Largest_online_retailer_whose_name_must_not_be_mentioned makes it happen: Digitalisation is bringing a new working class to modern society’. This is predominantly about the people who are employed with shipping and on the hotline. In my opinion, they should be used to optimise processes, because, don’t we all know, often the software doesn’t even allow special cases to be handled by the employee.

Plato had it, Einstein had it, I still have it…

What might we be talking about here? Perhaps you have already guessed. Yes, it’s the brain. That wrinkly grey mass of just about 3 lbs. Just imagine: if mine were lying next to those of Plato and Einstein, no one would be able to correctly identify them. In terms of our basic biological make-up, we don’t differ at all. From a different point of view, we do, and quite considerably. I can neither conceive of the world of thought of Mr Plato nor reproduce the genius of Mr Einstein. Although I have one too, I honestly never felt the need to be able to do so. But with this part of the body, in which reason and understanding and other things are supposed to reside, really incredible feats can be performed. It is one thing that we all have one. It’s another thing how we manage it. Let’s see…

Digital blues

The experiences of the last few weeks make me think of the popular German phrase: “Why make it simple when you can make it complicated?”

While the rest of the world is busy with going digital, there seem to be some pockets of resistance in Germany. My health insurance company – let’s call it Medisure – likes to present itself as efficient and customer-friendly. I was pleasantly surprised when they introduced an app that allowed you to photograph a multi-page bill and send it to them for processing, instead of filling out an ancient-looking form by hand with information they mostly already had. A year later, they added the feature of an email telling me a message had been received in the app. Which cryptically means the app can also show what reimbursement they just granted. Why the app can’t send me a notification, I don’t know. They will probably tell me it has something to do with data security.

Tulip mania

Like every year in late autumn, bulb planting day is approaching. I usually get things moving by giving my husband a whole sackful for his birthday, and selecting and shopping for the bulbs at the garden centre is definitely the more attractive part of this project for me.

Scilly Taxi Tale

Dear Harlequin fans, I confess, over the summer I neglected my educational mission and did not publish any “stories that life writes” for our blog. This will change again instantly, laughter provoked by bizarre stories helps best to banish winter blues and pandemical tin-foil theories.

The German title of this article is based on the Stern magazine column “News from Kalau”, which specializes in excruciating puns; no doubt the cartoonist would also think of a suitable cartoon for the following story. In short, the following story is about foreigners in strange places, weird streets and an irritable taxi driver.

We know the truth

We can’t explain why, but a whistleblower has granted our platform Harlekin.blog access to documents from whose content sounds so absurd that we thought it was a joke at first. But it is no joke. The documents are genuine, as insiders have confirmed to us; we must of course keep their identity secret for their protection.

Old Heads on Young Shoulders

Sometimes clients surprise me when I learn from them “how to do it right”. By that I mean how quickly transformations that no one previously thought possible sometimes succeed. For several years now, I have been discussing how to continuously change and improve with the board of an association that has set itself the goal of redefining and shaping youth work. What makes CREW, as the association is called, special?

An answer to everything?

But the question is simply, “Which one?”

Here in the Netherlands I am often asked very interesting questions. Older relatives of my husband’s, who are not familiar with navigation devices (or even Google Maps), call and ask me for the best route to drive from Würzburg to Tauberbischofsheim. Now, I haven’t been to this – undoubtedly very beautiful – region of Germany very often and can’t do much to enlighten them. That’s why I almost have a guilty conscience.

4 minutes

I was at the baker‘s again recently. In our town they are all pretty flabby (the rolls, not the bakers). So on Sunday mornings I like to cycle a longer distance to the next town and hunt for rolls. Besides, the local entertainment is remarkable. So here’s my latest experience…

Does it help or does it do harm?

I simply can’t hear it any more. I am repeatedly told that project managers need domain know-how, i.e. expertise beyond project management and leadership. This is also practically always a requirement in job advertisements.