Joviality
“the characteristic of being cheerful and festive”
When I see the word jovial, I think of my early days of working for a huge defense industry company (1980s). They gave me a manual entitled “JOVIAL”. Before I could start doing any software engineering for them I needed to learn JOVIAL…”Jules’ Own Version of the International Algebraic Language”. (Jules was computer scientist Jules Schwartz who helped create this programming language). I think I read the whole manual the first morning I was there. Except for a new-to-me concept of compools (google it), it was a pretty straightforward language.
The irony for me was…it was far from being a cheerful and festive place to work. The work itself was interesting, challenging (in a good way), and exciting at times. Being one of the very few females in engineering back then, it was challenging in a not so good way. And then when a big corporation bought us out and implemented lay offs and “cost saving” measures, it became even less jovial…a lot less. I left a year later.
I determined for myself that I wanted to work in a more cheerful environment. A few jobs later (1990s) I worked in an IT department as a web designer for a county government office in Florida. When they forced us into cubicles, it became more challenging to be there. That’s when I had the idea to decorate my space with my winnie the pooh stuffed animals and added a Dilbert inflatable cubicle door. The sign “on the door” said “NO”. (you can still find some online). In other words, I turned my space into a cheerful and festive space. Oh…and I also declared myself to be the Web Goddess and had it imprinted on my official county government business cards. (my boss was not happy about that…and yet everyone else loved it).
My last day there (January 18, 2000), I dressed up in a full-on angel costume with wings and halo. I attended the County Commission Meeting that morning to officially and on record thank the board for hiring me and that it was an honor to be their Web Goddess. (I won a national award for their web site). What makes my presentation even better is that just two-weeks before, the County switched over to video recording their meetings…prior to that it was only audio. Thankfully the board appreciated my presentation and one of them even declared that I am now a Web Angel.
Joviality for the win!!!
How about you? Is joviality a core value for you?
joyfully,
Maureen
The Mandala Lady
inspiring and encouraging creativity, curiosity, and play through the art of mandalas
About the 2024 Mandalas of the Day
Each day I will create and post a mandala inspired by one of 366 “value” words chosen randomly. The objective being to discover for myself which ones would best represent my core values…and by doing so, I hope it inspires you to determine your own.
Mandala of the Day 