Published in Curious·PinnedTime — Is There a Way to Gain More for What You Want?Can we make work work for us? — Have you ever thought this meeting could have been an email? My first job involved spending at least 5 hours of the day in meetings. Although the average time an individual can fully concentrate in a meeting is 13 minutes, the ‘urgent’ priorities my former boss set in the rapidly…Mwc Work9 min read
Published in ILLUMINATION·4 days agoWisdom From the Stoics That Will Make You Feel 10% Better TodayHow do you make sense of the madness of modern life? — Growing up if you’d asked me who Marcus Aurelius was, I’d have replied he didn’t get much screen time in Gladiator. Yet, like so many when Covid changed our world, I turned to the wisdom of the ancients to make sense of the madness of modern life. Stoicism especially provided…Stoicism2 min read
Published in DataDrivenInvestor·Jun 19The Importance of Creativity in BusinessThe opposite of a good idea can be another good idea As Ursula K. Le Guin said: “The creative adult is the child that has survived” and shockingly the data supports her point. In 1968 the social scientist George Land carried out an unusual experiment. He gave a NASA creativity…Creativity4 min read
Jun 10Storytelling and Your JobThe power of storytelling could make or break your next job. Mason Cooley quipped “If you call failures experiments, you can put them on your resume and claim them as achievements.” When hiring managers are looking at applicants with similar qualifications, what can make you stand out? The power of…Storytelling4 min read
Published in Mind Cafe·Jun 8What do Karl Marx, Winston Churchill and a Hedgehog have in common?It’s not just that they’re prickly. The Greek poet Archilochus wrote: “the fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.” This ancient saying is now associated with two distinct ways of perceiving events that happen in life. Hedgehogs believe in a single compelling vision for why things…Behavioral Economics3 min read
May 27What Tinder Tells You About Behavioural ScienceHere are 4 concepts to bear in mind the next time you’re tempted to swipe Rory Sutherland recently said at an event, meeting his partner before the rise of online dating was like getting the last helicopter out of Saigon. It’s a point of view that many can understand. Whether…Life Lessons4 min read
Published in Mind Cafe·May 233 Ways to Feel Less Helpless Right NowNo matter how big the world’s problems are — never forget your choices matter. — Phyllis Diller once said, “Never go to bed angry, stay up and fight”. I think she’s right; anger gets a bad reputation when often it’s an expression that we know the difference between right and wrong. For instance, watching countless demonstrations in the news should mean something. Yet, what we…Life Lessons4 min read
Published in Curious·Apr 27Marvel’s Secrets of StorytellingHow did Marvel become a marvel? How did Marvel become a marvel? After the success of Superman, there were many comic book writers and artists who hated their jobs. Again and again, they were asked to create all-American heroes who thumped the bad guy and never suffered acne. Stan Lee…Writing4 min read
Published in Better Humans·Apr 223 Self-Help Books That Actually HelpThese writers are not afraid of subjecting their hypotheses to rigorous scientific analysis — I always viewed self-help the way I viewed sex. Those who talk about it too much are the least likely to be actually doing it. The hope for a healthier and happier life is universal, but so are the people wanting to sell us gummy bears which simultaneously satisfy our…Personal Development4 min read
Published in Curious·Apr 18What Is the Forgetting Curve, and Can You Use It to Your Advantage?Anyone who’s forgotten someone’s name at a party can relate Has someone ever come up to you at a party and you have no idea who they are? Sir Richard Attenborough famously called everyone darling because he was not sure of their names. Similarly, I’ve learnt that by saying “lovely…Personal Development5 min read
