The insight for me is that the internet is the most incredible serendipity generator. -doh! Why didn’t I see that way before! A bit like the time I agonised over the best way of cutting pancakes with lasers without creating a burnt hair smell - then talking to a...
Where could you benefit from a launch before you are ready? Yesterday we launched the new website. It isn't 100% ready, but I chose to launch. It is about 90-95% ready, all the main elements are there, so we chose to launch anyway, then we (the small team around this...
Time to tell people what you are focussed on now. I'm about to re-launch my website after several months of going back to "First Principles" (First Principles thinking will be the subject of a future blog) in order to patiently build a concise "less is more" site....
For the AvGeeks out there, VP-CAL, a B737-400 from the early 90s Today a story from my past, then a piece of news around another fast entrepeneurial move around Covid vaccines from the Lloyds insurance market. Cayman Airways and a two hour coup. In July 1991, aged 25,...
It is the questions, not the answers, that truly matter. If you "get" this image, you are clearly a fan of one of the ultimate cult novels, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adams. So many life lessons (who knew towels were so important?), including:...
One of my favourite coaches, "Coach Pop" Believe in people that you believe in What does it feel like when someone tells you they believe in you, then shows you in their actions, then continues to support you. I think back to my own coaches, mentors, friends, family...
The new triple bottom line, from the article "Leading from Purpose" Hard is soft. Soft is hard In working in the field of leadership (including coaching, facilitation, being a sounding board), over and over again I've heard people label anything to do with people as...
Happy cyclist, fresh gözeleme in hand. Out of shot, Turkish coffee (of course!) Sam Duong (guest author of yesterday's post: What is the word for business in Chinese? ) is a dear friend and someone who absolutely creates adventures to make the very most out of life....
It’s only now that I’ve been nudged to delve more deeply into the meaning of the word ‘business’ from a Chinese cultural viewpoint and the insights gained from my practise. Originally calligraphy from Sam Duong {Guest post today from Sam Duong, entrepreneur and a dear...
22 years is a long time. When I was 8 years old, I watched Scotland compete in the 1974 football World Cup. They then qualified for every world cup after that, seven in a row, until, on June 23, 1998, aged 32, and the day before my oldest son's 4th birthday, I stood...
Attention /əˈtɛnʃ(ə)n/ the appropriate amount of mental energy to solve a particular taskStephen Hick's definition of attention In the most recent latest WhatComesNextLive conversation, it was a pleasure to talk with Stephen Hicks. As a way of introducing his work and...
A quote used by Viktor Frankl in my favourite book: "Man's Search for Meaning" One recurring theme in my conversations with clients and other leaders is bravery and, specifically to my thoughts today, around when people are seen by others as being brave, but to them...
Yesterday I shifted a planned client meeting from Zoom to a walk. I also anticipated we would walk longer than the appointed one hour, so cleared my diary. The weather cleared and we ended up walking well over two hours in glorious scenery and autumn weather. Now,...
Two thoughts to start your week around physical and mental wellbeing. In London, we are now on day four of our second lockdown. Yes, the official announcement is that it is for 28 days, but few people believe that will hold, it will be a long winter. So, today, two...
Don't shout at your children. Parents who look after their stress levels won't be so likely to ever shout at their children. As a parent, one of the things I regret the most is occasions where I yelled at them for something. On occasions when that happened it was...
It is time to "turn the ship around" for the good ship United States of America. What role will you play in the crew? Will you take responsibility? As I write this on the morning (USA time) on Thursday November 5th, the final result of the Presidential election is...
Fashion is fleeting, style is permanent. Linked In post from Mark Hogarth, 4th November 2020 Fashion is fleeting, style is permanent. I love this LI post from Mark Hogarth. Times change, quality endures. Much of my family heritage is from the Isle of Lewis, home of...
Only love can drive out hate “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” This morning I wake up to the US Election news. Whatever the final result my heart sinks to be reminded that around half of...
The only real shortcut in life is to understand it backwards. It's easier to solve a maze backwards and the same holds true with life. Volkswagen IDR smashes the Goodwood Hill record Each year since 1993, the Goodwood Festival of Speed has attracted a sold out crowd...
So, the U.K. is going back into lockdown on 5th November. Regular readers will know I predicted this on 20th September and a recurring theme since then has been to encourage preparation, “Proactive Resilience”. On Sunday I made the most of being able to visit stores...
Photo mounted behind the instructor at Revolutions Spinning in Cayman I love this quote from the great Eddy Merckx, a copy of which is mounted behind and over the shoulder of the spinning instructor's position at the Revolutions spinning studio in the Cayman Islands,...
This piece brought me Happiness and always brings Joy "Happiness is a Solid and Joy is a LiquidJ.D. Salinger We are certainly living in challenging times, so I find myself coming back again and again to areas of awareness and focus that we can choose that will support...
As we move into winter in this "Pandemic now", a key focus for us (and in my writing) is on "Proactive Resilience". Some thoughts today to support each of us with our resilience. I have been musing recently in my daily posts around layers of context and language. This...
Lift your sight above the treeline to see the big picture. Leaders are often advised by coaches, leadership books, training etc to work ON the business, not IN the business, to elevate to the "40,000 foot view" to see the big picture, the distant horizon, the long...
Seth's new book, available to pre-order on Amazon My work is to listen, then support. Clients will talk me through an opportunity or challenge, taking me through many angles and details before then asking me for my thoughts and insights. Quite often, my response...
Justice is about fairness. Even in this highly polarised world we live in (particularly around politics), I seek to, as Stephen Covey would say: "listen to understand". However, when something goes against my values, it breaches my boundaries and that means taking a...
"The Empty" (c) David Ross You learn more about a person in an hour of play than in a lifetime of conversationPlato Having looked at the long term weather forecast, I planned to take today off work to wander the hills of Surrey one last...
Sprezzatura: Concealing the Effort of Art from Aristotle to Duchamp A few days ago, Rachel Botsman wrote a short post on Linked In with an image with an equation: Confidence ≠ Competence. This got me thinking about what I think of as the "fine line between confidence...
Find that place of "effortless effort". My friend and teacher Kate Dunne chose the name "Flow" when she started creating her space and practice around therapeutic movement. I am fascinated by the concept of Flow (past post here). Today is Pelé's 80th Birthday, which...
Today a simple message around "The Art of Finishing Things", about getting it out to the public when it is good, not perfect. I feel inspired to tell this story today in the form of connecting the dots, thanks to my past #WhatComesNextLive guest Rob Poynton for...
In the coming months we can all benefit from some positive Uncertainty. Image from the VUCA2.0 blog of Gideon Chen Zhiyuan We live in a VUCA world (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous, as originated from the United States War College). The Leadership we need is...
Pause to reflect on the generosity we can offer by giving attention to and for ourselves. I love this Simone Weil quote, one shared on a group call of "We are Liminal" last week, a bi-weekly/fortnightly connection call for that group. My experience of the group was...
Take the time to make your perfect 10-year plan. Limited edition print available from Steve Chapman As I noted in: "Learn the rules like a pro, so you can break them like an artist", one of my favourite wisdom quotes is: “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery,...
Oscar Peterson, my favourite jazz pianist of all time, famously practised ten hours a day so he could improvise on stage, as I wrote about in: "Masters practice incessantly, then improvise". Today more thoughts on the value of putting in the time, of mastery, of...
Often with injuries and illnesses, there are "predictable delays" before the pain is felt. Still from the famous scene in "On the Beach", as Australia waits... Over 10 days ago I went to a lovely trattoria for lunch, where a heavy piece of artwork fell off the wall...
When I meet with clients, at the end of each meeting I ask them for a Key Learning. Typically what pops out is a concise and "knowing" statement. Today, October 15th, marks the three year anniversary of daily writing on this site, over 600,00 words and 1,000 posts....