One of the most frustrating problems we face in Africa is the lack of tangible investment or re-investment in infrastructure, particularly felt in the sub-standard network of roads and tracks that link its countries. In some countries, it is not uncommon to come across potholes the size of which could quite comfortably accommodate a fully-grown…
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. My three year old granddaughter has arrived at the stage where she asks a lot of “why” questions, has an opinion on most things…
I love flying – just as well, as I do a lot of it! When I was a boy, dreaming of wanting to become a pilot, one of my greatest memories was attending an air show, watching pilots go through their pre-flight routines, checking instrumentation and getting weather reports. I would be fascinated at the…
Having the opportunity of consulting and working within a number of industry sectors and various companies in many parts of the world, I am continually intrigued by the “motivation questions” that are so often asked – how can we motivate our staff well to achieve better productivity? How do we get our staff to take…
Charles (Chippy) Brand (civil engineer) bought a defunct little road-building business from his dad and moved back to a rented house in Carltonville, South Africa, to manage the company, C & J Reid. The company had few assets – antiquated steam-driven rollers, two motor graders which ran off power paraffin, a couple of ancient bulldozers…
As a frequent traveller, visiting different countries, staying in many different hotels and eating in many different restaurants, I occasionally get spoilt with fine service or product offerings that “blow me away” and leave me smiling: A warm wet towel upon arrival at a restaurant to mop brow and hands A pair of swans (made…
Many have made new year resolutions only to fail dismally in the implementation thereof. Others make goals to improve a certain aspect of their lives, but are not successful in creating a platform for new habits to form and for their newly-formed goals to be realised. This may result in frustration or even feelings of…
There’s a wonderful sign on one of the lengthy dirt roads in South Africa which reads: “Choose your rut carefully as you will be in it for the next one hundred kilometres”! “Ruts” are not particular to gravel roads, however, but seem to be part of the regular human experience as people get stuck in…
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…
Fish have always fascinated me – not only are the edible ones tasty, but it is also such a relaxing and particularly interesting experience to go down to the local aquarium in Cape Town to view what one does not normally have the opportunity of seeing in their “natural” environment, unless you are a regular…
There are numerous stories of those who had to overcome difficulty, were resilient and triumphed, even in the face of criticism or extreme hardship – Ignace Paderewski, the great Polish pianist, was told by his first piano teacher that his hands were too small to master the keyboard; Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper…
I love motor vehicles, especially those that are designed to perform at optimal levels in races on tracks or on the dirt in rallies. The back-up crew of mechanics and engineers are critical to any driver’s potential success, as the crew spend hours tweaking the performance and ability of the vehicle from engine to suspension,…
