At this time of year I tend to look back and reflect.  Have we made progress?  Are we further ahead than last year? Are we heading in the right direction?   Are we attracting the people we need to build the community? I look back at last December's newsletter and consider what we were thinking then, and where our thinking is now.

The past 12 months have been a watershed for CQ, with the team growing in size and strength allowing us to be bolder in our plans going forward.  

I was asked recently what were my highlights for the year. Well there are a number;

• Sonia, Mary Beth and Kathy Tracey joining our team has been a huge boost.

• Plus the recent feedback from members thanking us for the inclusion of some great new members into existing teams. This is something that goes on behind the scenes, which we put a huge amount of effort into, and so it is welcome to get that feedback.

• Outward Bound, Tocker & Associates and CQ’s joint venture was a ripper, which we will run again next August 31st - Sept 3rd.

• Running over 80 team meetings with most going off without a hitch.

• And finally, encouraged to get my thoughts down in a Blog - and people even reading it!

Last month I asked for songs that summed up your experience of CQ for 2017, and we have had some great music sent in - thank you. However, I am going to extend the offer until January newsletter, as people have indicated they need more time to consider. Anna Groves is even considering writing a song to sum up her experience - just hoping it’s positive. So January it is, until we post what has come in.

My wish for 2018 is for people to be able to take feedback without having to retaliate with a personal attack. Too often I see an issue raised by an individual, only to have the issue ignored and not debated, but instead an attack on the individual's character. It is often used in politics, and just drops the quality of the dialogue into the garbage. So please, get some skills, stay on track and debate the topic.

Shout out to:

Glenys Ker who has just gained her Doctorate in Professional Studies (D Prof) Adult Learning from Middlesex University in UK. Glenys has just joined CQ and we are looking forward to her expertise infusion. 

‘The Big CQ Meeting’

Wonderful to see members are signing up for the ‘The Big CQ Meeting’ early - thank you.

A reminder that this is the beginning of extending our 14 current scholarship positions, with all the profits from this event going to support more CQ Scholarships.    We are offering members the chance to showcase their businesses and products to other members at ‘The Big CQ Meeting’.  This will be run as a silent auction so you can bid on services you may wish to utilise. There will also be the opportunity for members to put up their Bach’s and other fun things in the silent auction.  Mary Beth and others have offered their Bach’s already.

The most wonderful example of generosity and support so far for the scholarship program has been from Bobbie O’Fee and Zoe Palmer and their team at ONLA. This is an accounting practice that puts people first - literally.  Bobbie chairs the CQ Board, and in lieu of her directorship fees, they sponsor 4 scholarship positions. ONLA believe in young professionals having the chance to accelerate their careers, by putting people first. Bobbie and Zoe you have set the bar.

Another huge act of generosity has been from Rod Oram, who has not only accepted the invitation to speak at the dinner the evening of the 10th, but at no cost. We are immensely grateful, and excited to have such an informed speaker. As many of you know, we like doing things differently and you all get a chance to influence what Rod will talk on - so follow this link.

Malcolm Gladwell

This month we had about 15 members go along to listen to the sage Malcolm Gladwell speak. We love his work, which distills some very important topics.

He focussed on teams, and the difference between soccer and basketball teams, which I am going to expand on fully in next month's Blog, as I can not do it justice here. Why not this months? It got bumped by a more pressing topic.

However, as a teaser, this shows what he was on about. A sequence of 48 passes by Tottenham Hotspur to score, and the point is that the 18th and 19th highest paid players in the squad, handled the ball the most. Not the superstars.

Harv's Blog

Improving the world with the power of skills

We understand University education can be an important part of the education system, but only for some, certainly not all. So how do we fill lift the skill levels of the trades, especially in the current environment?

This is where Worldskills comes in, with the vision to be New Zealand’s Champion in the development of Work Skills Excellence.  Their mission is raising the recognition of skill vocations as a rewarding career option, which is essential for our economic growth.

WorldSkills International and its member countries strive to promote excellence in vocational skill areas using several methods, however their main vehicle in this endeavor is a biannual international competition.

To enable members to identify suitable young people to compete at the highest of levels, it is necessary to have a pathway of increasingly complex and robust competitions, which in New Zealand begins at a regional level, then progresses to the national competition.

Malcolm Harris the NZ CEO, CQ member and all round good bugger, is looking to up the ante on the skill levels. So you will be hearing from him again and again in this newsletter in a variety of forms, because this is just so important.

Sir Peter Blake Trust Awards

Google's Aristotle Project

Joke of the year

Books, Films or TED Talks to check out!