Erin McShea’s Post

Today marks 1 year at Cronjé & Cronjé and it has truly been a transformative journey within the professional realm. Here are a few key factors I’ve learned along the journey: Don't be afraid to fail, because you will.
Things won't always go your way, but you need to “own" it, learn from the mistake, and move on. Again, your early career is a learning experience and if you're not failing, you're not learning. Your personal growth as a trainee is a responsibility that lies in your hands.Taking initiative, seeking out opportunities for growth, and being open to challenges are essential for career advancement. Embracing feedback, whether positive or negative, contributes to personal and professional development. Your work environment plays a crucial role in one's career development. The people you work with and the leadership in place significantly impact your growth and progress. It is essential to assess whether the environment fosters your excellence, encourages learning, and allows for open communication without feeling inadequate. I have been fortunate to be in a work environment that meets these criteria. Thank you to everyone who has supported me on this journey, from management to colleagues. Your support has been invaluable in making this journey a success.

Last month also marked my full 1 year contribution to my current company. Over the past year, it has been a valuable learning experience for me. Initially, as a newcomer, understanding the company's processes and creating a full reporting timeline plan within a week posed challenges. I dedicated time to familiarize myself with the SOPs and documents left by predecessors, which helped me grasp the workflow better. Throughout the journey, I continuously refined the timeline plan based on newfound insights and work together with the team to ensure timely project delivery. Navigating a new work environment also presented interpersonal challenges. Despite that, I embraced a mindset of focusing on the positives and learning from every experience. I've learned the importance of taking accountability and seizing opportunities to contribute effectively, rather than solely focusing on continuous pursuit without tangible outcomes. In addition to navigating the challenges and embracing the learning opportunities, I've also discovered the importance of passion in driving motivation, especially in a bad conditions. By remaining passionate about my work, I found the determination to keep moving forward. Having a clear direction and plan in mind has been instrumental in maintaining a sense of satisfaction upon completing tasks. Furthermore, significance of continuous self-improvement and readiness to adapt are equally important. Investing in personal growth and staying prepared for future advancements has been crucial in staying proactive and ready to seize new opportunities as they arise. This empowered me to navigate uncertainties with confidence and resilience. Overall, this past year has equipped me with invaluable skills and perspectives that I look forward to applying in my future endeavors. During a recent conversation with a friend who had just resigned and was about to start a new job. Her words truly amazed me when she mentioned that I had become a source of inspiration for her. She said, "Seeing how you've achieved progress all these years has actually motivated me to believe in myself and strive for more. If you can do it, I can do it too." Thank you for the kind words and appreciate for looking up to me. 🤭

Over the past few days, I’ve been on a journey of self-reflection and recalibration after navigating some challenging feedback in my job search. It’s been an eye-opening experience, and I wanted to share a few key insights that have emerged: The Importance of Narrative: It’s not just about what you’ve done, but how you frame your experience. I’ve been refining my narrative to highlight not only my expertise but how it directly aligns with the specific goals and challenges of potential employers. Continuous Learning: The feedback I received has driven me to seek out new learning opportunities. Whether it’s brushing up on the latest industry trends or deepening my knowledge in certain areas, I’m committed to staying ahead of the curve. Networking with Purpose: I’ve been more intentional about connecting with industry peers and mentors. These conversations have provided valuable insights and opened doors to opportunities I might not have considered before. Embracing Flexibility: Flexibility is more important than ever in today’s job market. I’m open to exploring roles that might be a little outside my original scope but offer the chance to leverage my experience in new and exciting ways. Thank you for following along on this journey with me. Every experience, whether a win or a challenge, is a stepping stone toward where I’m meant to be. Let’s keep pushing forward together! 💪

Congratulations to Øyvind, Bjørn, and Håkon from Høgskulen på Vestlandet (HVL) for completing their Bachelor of Science! This spring, they wrote their bachelor thesis in collaboration with us at Counting Hero. Their thesis addressed the question: “How can we automatically detect and alert about errors in a clear and reliable manner to reduce the time it takes to manually quality check the images?” This is exactly what we at Counting Hero work on every day, exploring how technology can be used to make our roads safer and more efficient. The thesis focused on automatically detecting poor image quality in pictures of tires on passing cars. Due to a relatively small number of images, a machine learning approach was not used. Instead, quality indexes were developed through data exploration. Initially, quality indexes were established, and then threshold values were calculated. The results of their study are very impressive: 91% of poor-quality images were correctly classified as poor. We consider this to be excellent results. Our tech team consider this as as an innovative solution and that the project will help reduce the time it takes to manually quality check images. At Counting Hero, we are passionate about developing technology that makes transport and mobility both safer and better. A big thank you to the students for a great time with us. We are cheering for you and look forward to following your future careers!

SAYING THANK YOU TO MYSELF. Embarking on a new chapter of life can be daunting yet exhilarating. It’s been over a year now since I took a leap of faith by not only relocating to a new country but also pivoting my career path. It was a huge struggle and conflict; at first, it felt like a personal betrayal, putting aside everything I’ve known—my passion, several successful businesses by all counts, a robust career experience spanning over 15 years in Branding, Marketing, Design, Product, and Strategy. The decision to transition into a full-fledged AI product strategist, investing resources and building up relationships from the ground up in the UK has been a pivotal one for me. Initially, the path ahead seemed shrouded in uncertainty. I struggled with how best to multiplex my experiences. For context, I have over 15 years of design & entrepreneurship experience, I built a successful brand strategy agency with clients cutting across multinationals and Governments, with several international awards to our acclaim. I founded a digital publishing company that was read in over 50 countries with a monthly readership of over 1 million corporate professionals and executives, I built a MICE business on the back of the publishing outfit's network, hosting executive conferences in several countries, I also started a PR practice with clients featured literally in every major global news outlet, from Bloomberg to Financial Times, CNN, Reuters, Aljazeera etc, I built a travel content platform with over 130,000 community members, a digital STR technology startup offering travel concierge for business travelers etc.  How do I turn all of this into a single personal value proposition for a new career in AI was the toughest question I had to answer. However, as days turned into weeks, I marveled at the newfound clarity, knowledge, and progress I’ve achieved in such a short span. I’ve found myself over the last couple of weeks seamlessly guiding individuals on their AI strategy, tools, and technology choices, and I go back home wondering when this all began. After a standup meeting this morning with my current co-founders, one of them quipped, “We have a good product, and we don’t necessarily need investments to get off the ground.” I looked at what we’ve built and about to launch in a dozen countries, and I was almost in tears. I am filled with a sense of fulfillment and excitement. This journey has reinforced the importance of embracing change, staying resilient in the face of adversity, and relentlessly pursuing one’s passion. Indeed, the path to success is often paved with uncertainties, but it is in navigating through them that we uncover our true potential and achieve remarkable feats beyond imagination. If today is my last, I’m happy I truly lived, but if not, we have oceans and mountains to conquer. Let’s get to work, for the world awaits. Feel free to repost and inspire someone.

Resilience is truly passion's anchor.

⏳ Time: The one thing we can't hold, rewind, or skip. It's a relentless teacher, and today marks 13 years since I first stepped into my professional journey. In these 13 years, if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the journey is never about knowing everything and being part of everything—it’s about embracing what you don’t know. Growth happens in those moments of uncertainty, failure, and struggle. I’ve faced countless ups and downs, but it’s the downs that have taught me the most. I will always be proud of the responsibilities, dedication, determination, struggle, and failures that have shaped who I am. Since schooling one valuable lesson this journey has taught me: Your current position never defines your future. True success lies in winning in the same place where you once faced defeat. To everyone who has been part of my journey, thank you. Here’s to the next chapter—more challenges, more growth, and embracing it all. 💪

As 2023 draws to a close, I'm excited to share a glimpse of my professional journey, filled with standout achievements in the dynamic realm of project management and collaboration. As a dedicated LMS and Salesforce Administrator, this past year has underscored my unwavering commitment to excellence. Key Achievements: 🎯 Task Mastery: Successfully completed an impressive 730 tasks, showcasing not just dedication but also precision in handling diverse and demanding assignments. 🚀 Project Support: Provided instrumental support to 42 projects, contributing to their seamless execution, highlighting a strategic approach to project administration, and pivotal contributions to achieving project milestones. 🤝 Collaboration Excellence: Emphasising effective communication skills and teamwork, collaborated on 855 tasks with a network of 214 collaborators, placing collaboration at the core of my work philosophy. Reflecting on these accomplishments reinforces the importance of continuous improvement and innovation in the ever-evolving landscape of technology and project management. My commitment to delivering results and fostering collaboration remains steadfast. Looking ahead, I'm eager for the opportunities the future holds, dedicated to leveraging my skills to meaningfully contribute to upcoming projects and collaborations. Thank you all for being part of my professional journey. Here's to another year of growth, accomplishments, and shared success! 🥂

You remember my Thrive Hub polo? Olatomiwa OLUSESI and his team thank you for the gift. yes, back to this: I remember I said I would be here to give you premium gist on it. Now, let's have a practical look at what is written on it. You can see "NOT YOUR AVERAGE GEN Z" on it, right? what does it mean to you? In the aspect of learning, I have something to say about generations and learning. Whether you are a Gen Z or not, I feel we can always learn from any generation, whether previous generations or the upcoming generation. Every generation has its own lessons. Let's learn from the errors, and if possible, provide solutions to those errors and try applying them to your present generation. I remember discussing with a genuine old man who told me about the history of education when it comes to calculation. Applying such calculations to some Gen Z means of learning can make calculations easier for them. I know Gen Z prioritizes education and is often motivated to learn new skills, both through formal education and online resources, which is a very good lifestyle. However, it is paramount we know that no generation should be condemned. Every generation has its value, and value does not perish. We should cherish values. On a final note, we shouldn't compete; let’s be inspired to learn to grow, let’s be inspired to be transformed, for the complement of each generation. I am Penner Paul Adedoyin

Petya Bógdanova - remember this name! ⭐️Couldn’t be more grateful for Petya‘s career development workshop. For me it was extremely useful and more of a human experience rather than something trendy and pragmatic. 📚The QUESTion method - As someone who is training to be a career counselor/coach, I found your material envigurating and provocative towards what we need to talk about and what we don’t we are usually blocked about and not talking about in our careers. 🙏You made me feel seen, empowered and gave me a lot of tools to push myself forward as someone who is building his own path. You inspired me to look inside my own beliefs and values and operate from inside out and not the other way around. ⭐️Last but not least Savvina Drougouti, thank you for your raw and unapolagetic vulnurability that translated through your story. There is no technical talent professional like you on our market, I can guarantee that. 🧑💻It gave me so much perspective and I going to say once more I felt really seen and represented as a technical recruiter myself in everything you represent.