Grateful for places - Marcus Purvis

I sometimes get asked why I don’t write about test and quality, after all it’s the field I’ve spent the last 18 years working in. My answer is I’m unable to add anything more than people like Alan Page and Brent Jenson already have and continue to do. You can see their Modern Testing principles here. In fact the one time I wrote about test and quality on LinkedIn I called them out. They are pioneers helping shape the future and it’s spreading nicely.

So the other day when someone asked me, I was reminded that I write about all sorts. I haven’t actually written about gratitude specifically in a while. This site is named Choose Gratitude so I sat and thought about what I’m grateful for today and if it would be interesting to anyone. That’s when an email thread started with some friends. We were jokingly comparing our work locations. As it happens, for lunch that day I grabbed a sandwich from the canteen and headed down to the main canal in Copenhagen. I sat on a bench and watched the boats go up and down. It was at that point I realised how privileged I am, privileged that is, to have worked in some amazing locations over the last 18 years.

In a world that moves faster than ever, it’s important to slow down and take a check of what we’ve had and what we have now. I sat there in the sun and thought about the experiences and people I’m grateful for having in my life.

Back to places…As I sat there eating my Danish sandwich (with amazing rye bread baked onsite at work!) I thought about the many people I’d worked with and the places I’d met them. Here are some highlights:

“You’re only here for a short visit. Don’t hurry, don’t worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way”
Walter Hagen

Electronic Arts – UK headquarters by Norman Foster in Chertsey. This building was specially designed and built for EA and has also been used in TV shows and movies like Inception. It was there I settled into my first role in the video game industry. We had a lake, open fireplace and a sports bar. Famous actors and movie producers would visit regularly and on a Friday we had free drinks by the lake while feeding the swans, lovely. It’s still the best location I have ever worked, I miss it.

Electronic Arts – Guildford studios. When we moved to the modern inner town office at Onslow House in the heart of Guildford I had a historical castle, it’s gardens, and river walks on my doorstep. The architecture and beauty of Guildford is wonderful and I’ll always have fond memories of my favourite area in Surrey.

Microsoft – UK headquarters, Reading Berkshire. Reading town for many doesn’t conjure up any kind of delight and I’ll admit outside of MS that goes for me too. However the MS campus in Thames valley Park was a great place to spend weekdays. I sat by the fountain and read books, napped in amongst the trees and walked along the River Thames for many of my meetings. This is where I grew more as a person than at any other time during my working life. The short video here doesn’t include the onsite supermarket, Minecraft floor and what was at the time an incredible learning centre with onsite librarians, it changed me forever.

Microsoft Lift London Studios – 30 Great Pulteney Street just off Carnaby street Soho and UK House just off Oxford Street It was in these locations I met with Jonathan Ross as he worked with us, said hi to Kylie Minogue as we shared the building with Spotify, and Noel Fielding of Mighty Boosh fame thought I was following him every lunch time as we left the office (he had one next door) at the same time each day and went to the same coffee shop.

Unity Technologies – Brighton. I wasn’t there very long, though in that time I became more appreciative of what Brighton has to give. Forever in my heart after watching Quadrophenia as a teenager, working in Brighton enabled me to explore the lanes, sit on the beach front during a lunch break and explore filming locations I hadn’t seen in a long time.

Unity Technologies – Copenhagen. I’ve been here almost 3 months now. It’s a wonderful city that has much on offer. Danish life suits me so far and I’m enjoying being somewhere so culturally enriching. It’s definitely the nicest and most suitable area I’ve worked in so far. Check out a pic of a spot a short walk from our office, not far from where I ate my sandwich while writing this post.