None of us will be right all the time. That’s not possible. With all the decisions we have to make, day after day [after day], it’s inevitable that some of them will be … sub-optimal. [And some of them will be downright disastrous … like the time I tied a t-shirt round the handlebars of my bike and it got caught in the front wheel, catapulting me onto the road, where I bounced off my
Remote working … we’re all familiar with it now, and it’s not going away. There are good things about it, and not-so-good. One of the challenges can be the feedback we get – or don’t get. Sometimes feedback is specific. We do a thing, and the people around us speak directly to that thing – where it’s good, and where it can be improved. [Essential]. Then there’s the other feedback we get – the more
The Novak Djokovic situation almost caused an argument between me and a good friend this morning. Until – thankfully – we realised we were talking about two different things. Whether Novak should play in the Australian Open is a complex, nuanced discussion, with many connected areas: 1 :: Personal responsibilityShould Novak be allowed to make his own decisions about his health?[Does that mean we all have to agree with his decisions?] 2 :: Business responsibilityAs
The Beginnning I think he was a bit drunk when he called. We’d worked together on a few things by then, so I was used to his enormous ideas. But what he said next threw me. “I’ve just been watching beach soccer on the telly.”“Right. And…?”“I think we should run an event.”“…” Four months later, we did. In just a few weeks, we became the UK’s leading beach soccer experts. [It’s probably more accurate to
Roughly 10,000 years ago, the First Agricultural Revolution saw humans begin to shift from being hunter-gatherers to farmers. People used technology, and it changed their environment. In the late 18th century, the First Industrial Revolution started the move away from farming and towards factories. People used technology, and it changed their environment. In the early 21st century, we are seeing the same thing happen again in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The technology we create affects
First Gig “Summer lovin’ had me a blast …” I sat there, palms sweaty, clutching my pristine new sticks. “Summer lovin’ happened so fast …” I sat there, almost wishing I was somewhere – anywhere – else. [Almost]. My first gig as a drummer was an abridged version of ‘Grease’ somewhere in Winchester. I’m 15, and have only been playing for a few weeks. “Well-ah well-ah well-ah HUH!” And with that ‘Huh!’, I’m off on
For a time, I was Stage Door Keeper at Her Majesty’s Theatre on the Haymarket in London. [Where you could still go and watch ‘Phantom of the Opera’ tonight if you wanted!] It’s one of those jobs where you get to know everyone, and hear everything … I was there during a cast change. Contracts were usually 12 months, so every year a couple of the roles would go to new people. Auditions had been
Branson and Bezos – Inspirational or Egotistical? Like many people, human beings in Space fascinates and excites me. I’ve paid close attention in recent years as SpaceX works on colonising Mars. Yes, we’ve got plenty of big problems to solve here on Earth, but I also think it’s important that we Sapiens set ourselves enormous, inspirational goals. But something about the recent ‘billionaire space race’ between Richard Branson and Jeff Bezos makes me uncomfortable. Particularly
Autumn 2001, a friend and I are promoting a pantomime. I’ve never done this before, so am learning as I go from my significantly more experienced friend. He has the great idea of running a competition for tickets in collaboration with the local radio station. “I’m going on the breakfast show to do an interview – why don’t you tag along?” he says. We turn up, meet the DJ and sit in front of those
Back to 1995, and I’m selling business telephone systems. [Spoiler alert – it didn’t last long.] Our sales trainer was a larger-than-life North Londoner. The sort of guy for whom selling was a competition, with winners and losers. “And I hate losers.” The first part of the sales process was getting past whoever answered the phone, and through to the right person. One of the key techniques was to be confident – to sound like
Weekly [digital] email to help navigate the [analogue] world …
Weekly [digital] email to help navigate the [analogue] world …
