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She died after losing her battle with cancer…

This was the news this month re Dame Tessa Jowell, a former UK Cabinet Minister.

Almost without exception, the media coverage I heard and read talked about her ‘losing her battle with cancer’ or her ‘brain cancer fight’.

These words bother me.

I’ve wondered for quite a while now whether when we talk about cancer in this way we put pressure on everyone who receives a similar diagnosis to ‘fight’.

And, then, when they do die, the implication seems to be that they’ve somehow ‘lost’ or ‘failed’ – and maybe didn’t try hard enough… Continue reading “She died after losing her battle with cancer…” →

Discerning Disclosure

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How much do you think about, or notice, the information you give other people or organisations – verbally, or in written or electronic form?

Do you know what they know about you or what they do with that information?

This issue has been highlighted in the news recently regarding Facebook and Cambridge Analytica.

Continue reading “Discerning Disclosure” →

A Paltry (or Paltery?) Excuse…

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A friend recently shared a BBC article with me on ‘paltering’ which, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, means to:

“Equivocate or prevaricate in action or speech.”

Or, as we might say, to:

“avoid answering the question that has been asked.”

Is this, in effect, lying?

And why do we do it? Continue reading “A Paltry (or Paltery?) Excuse…” →

“I’m not in love…”

This song by 10cc and written by its band members Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman, was played on the radio while I was driving last weekend.

Immediately it reminded me of  myself as a teenager – which I was at the time it was released. Music does that, doesn’t it, takes us straight back there.

And I realised, too, that I feel differently, as I listen to it now… Continue reading ““I’m not in love…”” →

Following the Herd

I was at a CIPD Sussex Branch Conference on the Future of Work yesterday which was excellent.

One of the speakers, Leatham Green (whose session I really enjoyed) showed a couple of short, very funny and thought-provoking YouTube clips about how we copy other people’s behaviour even if we don’t know why or it doesn’t make any sense. I’ve written about this phenomenon before in my post: ‘The Psychology of Unwritten Rules’.

I thought I’d share these clips with you now because I really like them and hope that you will, too – the first is just under 4 minutes and the second just 2½ minutes – and I think both are well worth taking the time to watch for the entertainment value alone.

The first one is a social experiment:

Continue reading “Following the Herd” →

Holding onto anger…

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I use this concept myself, and with clients.

I think it describes very well what happens when we hold onto anger beyond the point at which it is useful to us – and when we hold a grudge. Continue reading “Holding onto anger…” →

The impact of technology and the internet – let’s just think about it for a moment…

I was inspired this week by a meeting I went to on e-learning to share the following (short but effective) videos with you.

Here’s the first one (just under 5 minutes). As you’ll see, some of the statistics are already out of date (it’s from 2014) and you might disagree with some of the predictions, but I think it illustrates really well just how fast things are moving…

And, aimed more at the world of business, and only 2½ minutes long, I rather like this one, too:

Continue reading “The impact of technology and the internet – let’s just think about it for a moment…” →

Compare and Despair

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TV and radio host Fearne Cotton talked openly this week about her own depression in a short (only 3½ minutes) BBC podcast. 

I was particularly struck by what she said about us “… doing that awful compare and despair sort of thing…” Continue reading “Compare and Despair” →

Paper Still Has a Place in Our Digital World

I read an interesting BBC article recently: ‘Why paper is the real killer app.’ paper-153317_1280.png

Even though I use my laptop, phone and tablet a lot for work and socially, writing the old-fashioned way – using pen and paper – still has its place in my life.

And it seems there are plenty of people who agree with me. Continue reading “Paper Still Has a Place in Our Digital World” →

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