I am currently reading “The Power of Story” by Jim Loehr. In the introduction he puts a name on the widespread condition of “presenteeism“: “Without investing high-quality, focussed energy in the activity before you, whatever it may be, setting time aside simply takes us from absenteeism to presenteeism – a condition increasingly plaguing American business, a … Read more
At the very simplest, a story is: A character Who wants something Overcomes obstacles to get it An epic story is A character Who wants something massive And is willing to risk everything to get it The real depth of any story is not whether the character achieves the goal but who they become as … Read more
I often use an exercise called The Lifeline in my teaching. I found a good summary of the exercise here. In the exercise people reflect on the important positive and negative experiences of their life. Something that has struck me after all these years of watching groups work on the exercise – it is the … Read more
When we all end up doing what nobody wanted to do I was out at a dinner with a large group of friends recently. At the end of the night I overheard two people talking about a local beach party. One said “these beach parties are a big thing here in Spain.” The other said … Read more
Toastmasters is a wonderful organisation for anybody who wishes to improve their ability to speak with impact. However, there is something that has often challenged me with the “best” toastmaster speeches. They are very clearly the work of someone who has worked very, very, very hard on the words, gestures and voice that they use … Read more
When I worked at Accenture, we were often in the business of identifying the existing business processes and then analysing how we would enable these processes with technology. Sometimes it was putting a mobile phone purchase process onto Siebel CRM, sometimes it was putting insurance sales onto SAP ERP. A senior partner used to say … Read more
I came across this paragraph in a blog post by sales professional Grant Cardone. “No one buys a $57,000 watch to tell time. People buy things to solve problems. The cost of the item isn’t what matters. Once the buyer is able to see the problem the product solves, their decision becomes much easier to … Read more
Devdutt Pattanaik tells TEDx that if you know the patterns that you are looking for, India’s apparent chaos is actually order. The mythology of the West: kill the chaos-creating dragon, create order The mythology of India: liberate yourself from boundaries A beautiful western garden is ordered. Weeds are weeds, trees are trees and flowers are … Read more
“Koyaanisqatsi” is a Hopi word. It means “life out of balance.” The Hopi are a Native American people who primarily live in the region around Arizona. The name Hopi is a shortened form of Hopituh Shi-nu-mu (“The Peaceful People” or “Peaceful Little Ones”). What is balance? What is a balanced life? Does such an ideal … Read more
Take a moment and think about the people you know well. Who is the most psychologically resilient of your friends or family? Who would cope the best with major setbacks? Who would be able to keep their heads while all about them are losing theirs? Dealing with Failure: Resilience I was at … Read more