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10 Euros, half a pack of rolling tobacco and 5 cans of light beer to sweep the streets for a day. That’s the deal under an initiative for the groups of rowdy alcoholics at Amsterdam’s Oosterpark to curb their “anti-social behaviour”.
Would you say that’s a good deal?
When you’re the one who gets insulted day in day out by the drunkards at your local park?
Or when you’re one of the guys? And need a beer just to function? Like a heroin addict needs their methadone shot or a shift worker needs their coffee on the go.
While people around Oosterpark believe that the initiative dubbed as ‘brooms for beer’ is a win for all involved, some of the participants are wondering whether they’re better off – over and above the tangible rewards. Life looks pretty much the same after half past 3.
As we’ve been working away on the InWithForward site, we’ve been asking ourselves what numbers help us to capture what’s changing. Rather than what’s staying the same. What can we measure to know we’re having a good week? And moving forward?
So let me introduce to you our first attempt at the ‘Did We Have A “Good” Week?’ success metrics. For us and everyone to be able to see what we’re up to and how we are doing.
Last week we’ve tested:
0 New Hunches
A hunch is one of our assumptions about how change happens. Like to make bottom-up change stick we need to not only prototype solutions with people on-the-ground but within systems as well. Last week, we didn’t have an opportunity to experiment with any of our hunches. We’ve been in analysis mode while hanging out with people and have been making things without really trying out new ways to change.
4 New Stories Gathered
From people like Jetje, 84 about how the days in the nursing home compare to her days as a ballroom dancer and make-up artist. And from Marlene at the job centre about coaching long-term unemployed people and what the future with online job centres might hold for them.
3 Partners Engaged
Like Felua Group as potential partner for the ‘Opportunities that work’ project with Kennisland and Federatie Opvang.
12 Revisions
Like to the story we’re writing with Uncle Kev, the 4-time foster grandad and self-made schoolbooks author. And to the invite for the ‘Small Starter, Big Appetite’ conversations that are coming soon.
2 Ah-ha Moments
When we changed our thinking about something. Like when Jeltje helped us to see the difference between professionals and professionalised.
We’re planning to update the five measures on our homepage after each week.
What do you think of the measures?
We’d love to know what you make of them for revision #1.