Sharon O'Dea
@sharonodea.com
Consulting, writing and speaking on comms, collaboration & future of work. Cofounder Lithos Partners, DWXS and 300 Seconds. Gym bore. Takes too many photos of Amsterdam.
Pinned
Sharon O'Dea
@sharonodea.com
· May 23
🎉 Big news: I’m writing a book!
Digital Communications at Work is a practical guide for folks managing intranets, apps & comms channels. It’s packed with case studies, tips & lessons from the coalface. Co-authored with @digitaljonathan.bsky.social, published by Kogan Page, it’ll be out in 2026.
Digital Communications at Work is a practical guide for folks managing intranets, apps & comms channels. It’s packed with case studies, tips & lessons from the coalface. Co-authored with @digitaljonathan.bsky.social, published by Kogan Page, it’ll be out in 2026.
This week’s weeknote is about letting go. Of drafts turning into artefacts. Of things you could keep perfecting forever. Of the comforting illusion of control.
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
Weeknote 2026/01
Snowy Amsterdam this week (photo: Sharon O’Dea) Amsterdam was briefly hit by snow this week, which meant Schiphol ground to a halt and the city centre instantly transformed into an ice rink —…
sharonodea.com
January 11, 2026 at 6:54 PM
This week’s weeknote is about letting go. Of drafts turning into artefacts. Of things you could keep perfecting forever. Of the comforting illusion of control.
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
If you ever fancy a proper nerdy trip, there’s a little ferry that goes around the Rotterdam Container Port and over to the shipping museum. 1hr, €6. It goes round all the giant ships. When we did it, it was the sand Ever ship that got stuck in the Suez.
January 10, 2026 at 9:42 PM
If you ever fancy a proper nerdy trip, there’s a little ferry that goes around the Rotterdam Container Port and over to the shipping museum. 1hr, €6. It goes round all the giant ships. When we did it, it was the sand Ever ship that got stuck in the Suez.
Organic reach is effectively zero if you're not paying. Journalists are on there, but it's not a channel the public use to stay informed. You'd reach more MPs and policymakers by printing your statement off and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
January 9, 2026 at 12:58 PM
Organic reach is effectively zero if you're not paying. Journalists are on there, but it's not a channel the public use to stay informed. You'd reach more MPs and policymakers by printing your statement off and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
In my former life, I wrote lengthy business cases persuading companies and gov depts that they needed to be on Twitter, and put resources behind doing it
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
Keir Starmer's spokesman says X limiting deep fake images to paid users "simply turns a feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service. It's not a solution.. it's insulting the victims of misogyny and sexual violence."
Still won't commit to a ban or to stop posting there
Still won't commit to a ban or to stop posting there
January 9, 2026 at 12:56 PM
In my former life, I wrote lengthy business cases persuading companies and gov depts that they needed to be on Twitter, and put resources behind doing it
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
An org I advise ultimately decided to stay cos leaving would "look political". On balance thought it better to continue rather than face being called woke by whatever self-radicalised weirdos are still on there.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
January 9, 2026 at 12:49 PM
An org I advise ultimately decided to stay cos leaving would "look political". On balance thought it better to continue rather than face being called woke by whatever self-radicalised weirdos are still on there.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
It may be too early to declare 2026 my year, but I just had every Sonos device in my home work perfectly right away, so, you know.
January 9, 2026 at 12:26 PM
It may be too early to declare 2026 my year, but I just had every Sonos device in my home work perfectly right away, so, you know.
They had some along those lines in Zara (hers is much nicer, but Zara more in my price range)
January 8, 2026 at 8:28 PM
They had some along those lines in Zara (hers is much nicer, but Zara more in my price range)
Yeah you'd have more traction with MPs just printing your message out and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
January 8, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Yeah you'd have more traction with MPs just printing your message out and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
"Our reach is much wider"
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
January 8, 2026 at 3:53 PM
"Our reach is much wider"
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
Remember when they launched video calling and announced it would replace Zoom and WhatsApp and within a month even their CEO had forgotten it happened?
January 8, 2026 at 11:50 AM
Remember when they launched video calling and announced it would replace Zoom and WhatsApp and within a month even their CEO had forgotten it happened?
Delighted to see Diary of a CEO is finally getting cancelled over on TikTok.
January 8, 2026 at 8:26 AM
Delighted to see Diary of a CEO is finally getting cancelled over on TikTok.
Exactly that. The argument is that gov messaging should be where people are. But I see no evidence that the people any UK public body needs to communicate with can be found there, and even if they were the algo means their posts aren't seen anyway. There is no actual comms benefit to be gained.
January 7, 2026 at 4:28 PM
Exactly that. The argument is that gov messaging should be where people are. But I see no evidence that the people any UK public body needs to communicate with can be found there, and even if they were the algo means their posts aren't seen anyway. There is no actual comms benefit to be gained.
I can’t see how any public body justifies continuing to post on X. Not only are you supporting this, you’re getting nothing in return as posts are essentially invisible, reach-wise.
January 7, 2026 at 4:01 PM
I can’t see how any public body justifies continuing to post on X. Not only are you supporting this, you’re getting nothing in return as posts are essentially invisible, reach-wise.
If you/he have iPhones it’s well worth getting AirTags. Can pretty much precisely pinpoint your bag. I even got mine back after someone nicked mine off the train in Brussels.
January 6, 2026 at 10:32 PM
If you/he have iPhones it’s well worth getting AirTags. Can pretty much precisely pinpoint your bag. I even got mine back after someone nicked mine off the train in Brussels.
I might argue that nicking food from shops when you’re broke is morally justifiable, but we don’t just get to follow laws we agree with and this is a deeply unwise precedent for a politician to set.
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
Trump was ‘morally right’ to attack Venezuela and seize Maduro, says Kemi Badenoch
‘The legal certainty is not yet clear, morally I do think it was the right thing to do,’ Tory leader says
www.independent.co.uk
January 6, 2026 at 5:21 PM
I might argue that nicking food from shops when you’re broke is morally justifiable, but we don’t just get to follow laws we agree with and this is a deeply unwise precedent for a politician to set.
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
I got my nails done to mark ten years this week since Bowie gave us Blackstar, and then died two days later and suddenly it was a completely different album.
January 6, 2026 at 2:34 PM
I got my nails done to mark ten years this week since Bowie gave us Blackstar, and then died two days later and suddenly it was a completely different album.
This year it genuinely felt out of control. I wonder if it’s the tipping point where people who were on the fence about a ban will back it.
January 3, 2026 at 9:58 AM
This year it genuinely felt out of control. I wonder if it’s the tipping point where people who were on the fence about a ban will back it.
I suppose it’s possible that the underage kids wandering around the richest bit of the city with cans of beer nicked from their dads were an immigrant gang, but… well.
January 3, 2026 at 9:47 AM
I suppose it’s possible that the underage kids wandering around the richest bit of the city with cans of beer nicked from their dads were an immigrant gang, but… well.
Over at the Bad Place, they’re trying to blame the NL New Year Fireworks shambles on immigrants. Of course they are. 🙄
(The people setting off fireworks in the street, and yeeting them under cars, in post boxes, at buildings were - as they are every year - mostly 13 year old boys)
(The people setting off fireworks in the street, and yeeting them under cars, in post boxes, at buildings were - as they are every year - mostly 13 year old boys)
January 3, 2026 at 9:05 AM
Over at the Bad Place, they’re trying to blame the NL New Year Fireworks shambles on immigrants. Of course they are. 🙄
(The people setting off fireworks in the street, and yeeting them under cars, in post boxes, at buildings were - as they are every year - mostly 13 year old boys)
(The people setting off fireworks in the street, and yeeting them under cars, in post boxes, at buildings were - as they are every year - mostly 13 year old boys)
I think there’s a combined train-ferry ticket that takes you from London to Harwich for the night ferry. But the train London-Amsterdam is cheaper and quicker.
December 29, 2025 at 10:07 PM
I think there’s a combined train-ferry ticket that takes you from London to Harwich for the night ferry. But the train London-Amsterdam is cheaper and quicker.
The cognitive dissonance of the public, in a nutshell: people think the pension system is unsustainable, while at the same time complaining it’s not generous enough.
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
Most Europeans think state pensions will become unaffordable, polling shows
YouGov survey finds many say payments are too low and oppose reforms such as raising retirement age or cuts
www.theguardian.com
December 29, 2025 at 1:23 PM
The cognitive dissonance of the public, in a nutshell: people think the pension system is unsustainable, while at the same time complaining it’s not generous enough.
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
Good morning from me, a smug bastard who kicked off Christmas Day by doing a spin class.
If this doesn’t get me on a hundred block lists, nothing will.
If this doesn’t get me on a hundred block lists, nothing will.
December 25, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Good morning from me, a smug bastard who kicked off Christmas Day by doing a spin class.
If this doesn’t get me on a hundred block lists, nothing will.
If this doesn’t get me on a hundred block lists, nothing will.
Shout out to the client - a very large company - who asked me to invoice two days ago, and has already approved for payment.
The spirit of Christmas, right there.
The spirit of Christmas, right there.
December 24, 2025 at 2:42 PM
Shout out to the client - a very large company - who asked me to invoice two days ago, and has already approved for payment.
The spirit of Christmas, right there.
The spirit of Christmas, right there.