Most of us suspect that most of the time ignorance is not bliss. It is disabling and potentially dangerous. Of course there are situations where we are better off not knowing (Tom Cruise in Top Gun comes up with that famous line “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you!”) but if […]
Monthly archives: September 2009
Beneficial Disruption?
Embrace disruption. It has within it a wealth of richness and opportunity. As Hilary Clinton once remarked, “Never waste a good crisis.” I remember a professor saying he resented the interruptions of his students whilst he was doing his work – until he realised the interruptions were his work. I love the work of Margaret […]
An Imperfect Leader? Perfect.
Follow a leader who walks with a limp, the man said. Really? Yes, a leader who walks with a limp has a respect for the trail and has to pace himself. He won’t rush on ahead of you. He has also discovered his own limitations and so will understand yours. However he has recovered sufficiently […]
Cavewalking
Imagine a fairly deep narrow dark cave with one entrance and exit into the warm sunshine. Imagine yourself just inside the entrance to the cave. Imagine a lion or other threatening wild animal standing outside the entrance to the cave. It knows you’re there. You have a choice: face the animal, or creep further back […]
It’s a Pleasure
I’ve been thinking a lot about ‘pleasure’ recently, how important it is, and how central and essential to the human experience. I suspect it is very close to the very reason we live. And I want to include all pleasure in this description, as long as it is beneficial to everyone and there are no losers. (So […]
Terror at Two (and a half) and a Miracle at Fifty-Something.
I worked with a client recently (we’ll call her Janny) who, at the age of two and a half was rushed into hospital with peritonitis. Her life was saved (obviously) but the trauma she experienced at that tender age has powerfully formed her whole life: She has lived with a ‘gut-level’ fear, pretty much every […]
Poverty Knocks
There is an age-old question: What do you do when people come to you for help, in tough circumstances, you have what they need but they are unable to pay for it? Nothing comes free, so do you pay for it ‘out of your children’s inheritance’ as they would say on Dragon’s Den, or do […]
Affirmation.
I love the power of affirmation. Regardless of whether a person is doing the ‘right’ thing or not, it is possible to affirm them without agreeing with their actions. In a world beset with uncertainty and insecurity, affirmation transforms the day, the week, the month… a lifetime. Without a shadow of doubt, I need it, […]
Caring too much?
Heart specialist: Well, sir, your stressed condition is caused by an over-active sense of responsibility. Patient: You mean I care too much? Heart specialist: Precisely. So what is the antidote to the person who worries too much and is fearful for the sensibilities of others? What about the person who interprets worrying as being loving […]
The Poet
I thought he was great. (He thought he was small) His damaged self-image no longer stood tall The little old poet lived his life in a dream His scratchings expressed a monotonous theme. Few people would read the hard-written lines, The handful who did saw the pitiful signs Of a poet obsessed with declaring his […]
