To search, in earnest, requires hope. Without it, you become inattentive and might very well miss the thing you’re looking for. This is true for those keys you’ve misplaced in the house, for the tragic loss of aircraft at sea, and everything in between. The scale of the search doesn’t change the need for hope – it only makes it harder to sustain. We still … Continue reading Lost and found
While walking the pooch a while ago I spotted this collection of branches. We couldn’t work if it was like a log library for dawgs to borrow from, or maybe a wonky ladder in the making. The pooch didn’t add much to the thinking actually, he just took a log without getting it stamped. I’ve been thinking about the wonky ladder though – it feels … Continue reading The ladder to success
After nearly 20 years of working in software development, I want to work with people far more than technology. What I really want to do is switch to coaching. Quite how to make the breakthrough isn’t clear, especially when there are financial hurdles and the economy isn’t throwing life-changing jobs around right now. So I look around the web (thanks, technology – I do still … Continue reading It’s all out there
For a long time I’ve worked at cultivating at a daily practice of gratitude. In wrapping up the day before bed, I like to think of something I’m truly grateful for. Over time my brain has become more adept at flagging up moments that I might come back to in that evening’s review. When I got in the car today, the windscreen wipers swished back … Continue reading Being grateful
I was chatting with a friend today, and I recalled reading how women are more likely to say thank you to their virtual assistants than men are. I was making the point that I’m pleased to be thinking more deeply about structural inequality than I have done in the past. We had a bit of back and forth on why men might be more direct … Continue reading Thank you, Siri, or not
I’ve been listening to a lot more podcasts lately – they go well with running long distance. What I’ve been struck by in the best of them, is the generosity between host and guest. The first rule of improv comedy is “yes, and…”, where you take the premise offered by another then and build on it. You craft a curious tower, shored up with positive … Continue reading Yes and, generosity
Never mind the summer economic plan from the Chancellor, this is a good time to challenge the Neo-liberal consensus. The institutions we’ve been to shown to need most are, by design, communal and inclusive. They’re not perfect, but at their most effective, those institutions aren’t generating profit, they’re weaving the fabric of society. As we look to the future, let’s put our money into those … Continue reading It’s the economics, stupid
I’ve hugely enjoyed reading ‘The War of Art’ by Steven Pressfield. He talks about Resistance (yep, with a capital ‘R’) and how it impacts what we contribute. His book is pretty pared down to begin with and while he offers different perspectives on almost the same thing across the pages, it’s that rounded view that builds to such a powerful and, for me, revelatory message. … Continue reading Look carefully
This will pass, things will get better. It’s a common reassurance given to people experiencing hardship. It’s well intended, but to me it feels a little hollow. There’s no guarantee and so we cannot merely hold on and hope, confident that better will arrive soon enough. But, things definitely CAN get better. Hope is a key part of that happening. Optimism isn’t a failure to … Continue reading It may, it will, get better
…you’ll stay that way, me Mum used to say to me. I really must learn to mind my face when there’s a camera out! Still, good training run today – nearly 15 miles up and down the beautiful edges we have around #theoutdoorcity. There’d be another 70 to go, when I trot along The Ridgeway in a couple of weeks, raising money for Refuge and … Continue reading If the wind changes…
