“In a child’s lunchbox are a mother’s thoughts” (Japanese Proverb) On occasion, I also took my turn as a parent preparing lunches for my children when they were in junior school. I was not that creative I guess in what I prepared but was very creative in the way that I cut the sandwiches –…
The human being is required to change through all stages of life – these changes are sometimes subtle in nature, but at other times, almost forced. The changes include adjustments in approach, refinement to character, panel-beating one’s attitude and reversing bad habits. As expectations rise and more responsibilities are conferred on one by people in…
Emotional expression is part of being human – emotions need to be communicated, shared and debriefed whether they are positive or negative in their origin. All emotions need resolution – joyous news needs to be celebrated together with others; sadness needs empathy and closeness within meaningful relationships. The work environment is no exception as it,…
“Our world is not divided by race, colour, gender, or religion. Our world is divided into wise people and fools. And fools divide themselves by race, colour, gender, or religion” (Nelson Mandela) In mathematics, division is a process of splitting a specific amount into equal parts. The number being divided is called the dividend, which…
Gillian Barbara Lynne (CBE) was born on 20th February 1926 in Bromley, Kent, England and was recognised as a dance talent at a young age. Teaming up with her childhood friend, Beryl Grey, while still at school, she danced to blot out the tragedy of the violent death of her mother in a car crash…
“Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he can and should be and he will become as he can and should be” (Johann Goethe, German Philosopher) Most people respond to being treated with respect by elevating their thoughts and actions to the same level of…
I love stories and especially mythology. Myths may be seen as a compilation of well-chosen, but contrived characters, weaved into a story to tell of a foundational and even an eternal truth. The phrase “mythic reality” sounds at first like a contradiction of terms – “mythic” meaning by popular belief “not true” and “reality” meaning…
“Coercion cannot but result in chaos in the end” (Mahatma Gandhi) The trip on the metro was neither therapeutic nor overwhelming. It was just a means to an end – getting to work on time. In fact, a crowded train didn’t really provide the environment for reflection for Joe, so he found that thinking about…
A friend and client of mine, Malcolm Ferguson (owner of Strategy Activator), whilst preparing for a talk about failure, spoke to me about the approach he should take for the speech. He noted that he wanted to use a facilitation example for the talk where one of his previous delegates felt that he was picking…
If you have a dream, why wait? Passion follows a dream – not the other way round. There will always be sufficient energy and resources if the dream is big enough. If there is dream clarity, you will be able to start seeing how the various parts of your life intersect and develop a plan…
Children can teach us adults a lot if only we would listen to them, pick up on their simple (even simplistic) logic and the nature of the questions that they ask. When my granddaughter was three years’ old, she arrived at the stage where she asked a lot of “why” questions, had an opinion on…
When presidents play God, one is reminded of Martin Luther King’s words: “Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.” Being a good leader in any context is tough – having a worthy vision, communicating with clarity, engaging authentically, empathising with compassion, providing hope, etc. One of the…
