I spent less than 24 hours in Ireland this week. I flew the night before, arrived at 9pm and went straight to my hotel near a business park just outside Dublin. In reality, my trip consisted of travel, hotel room, breakfast and all day meetings on a business park before flying back to Paris.
I was frustrated that I couldn't see Dublin, I've never been to Ireland before and I'd had no choice over dates so couldn't wangle a Friday or Monday meeting, which could have extended to a weekend city break.
But what an energising, refreshing time it was!
The taxi drivers chatted away, the hotel staff were sincerely friendly and the full Irish breakfast filled my stomach. But it was my Irish colleagues I adored. Three back to back meetings with teams I'd never met before and I suddenly found myself chatting, answering interested, direct and intelligent questions about the projects I presented, enthusiasm about certain benefits my projects could bring to their business and a warmness and invitations to follow up on very specific actions (i.e. no blarney).
What a change from some of the French and British teams I meet with*, who are cynical, discouraging, sceptical and often look for reasons for things 'not' to happen rather than the reasons they could.
I feel strangely enthusiastic about things today!
* And anyone who is accessing this from the UK office (I see the company ISP address in my logs!) I don't mean you!
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