NCS
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My Podcast Episode: Mentoring
I had the pleasure of appearing on the Grasp.hr Podcast a few weeks ago and the episode just dropped. Click on the link above to listen. I talked about my earliest mentoring experience as a caddy to businessmen at 13, my life at Eli Lilly and my eventual move to Veeva Systems. We discussed the… Read more
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Knowledge vs Execution
When you push into areas that are totally new for you there is a perfectly natural tendency to to feel like you cannot be effective without the full information or knowledge that you are missing. That something which will help you be effective. Knowledge is great, it is key and you must seek it and… Read more
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Feel, Felt, Found
Today, I had the opportunity to talk with a colleague. The discussion was how to handle the situation when a customer is perhaps reacting to some unwelcome news. I shared with him a ‘tried and tested’ technique. Situation: A customer has heard a piece of disappointing news, how to manage this is adopt the method… Read more
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Sorry, I Could Not Find Time!
I hear this stated on occasion, many subscribe to the fallacy of time as this elusive currency we all struggle with, what we actually mean is; “I did not consider this task important enough over my other things.” It ranked low on their list and they don’t like saying it as they have not truly… Read more
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Seen It All Before
I think we can all agree age is a very high price to pay for maturity, but what maturity teaches you is the feeling so often that you have seen that before, heard that debate before, experienced that moment before. Being married to a historian just cements this assertion. My wife reminds me that we… Read more
action, advice, aphorism, Beach, beaches, blog, Blue mind, books, carpe diem, choices, endeavour, failure, fate, first lines, hard work, hardwork, heat, ideas, just do it, just keep swimming, knowledge, lancing, learning, lessons, life, loss, narrative, newspapers, people, philosophy, quotes, Reading, Sea, seas, seaside, sharing, ships, Shoerham-by-sea, Story, storytelling, sussex, swimming, water, waves, wisdom, Writing -
Little Disappointments
When I was a teenager studying english literature at College I was fascinated by the short stories of Katherine Mansfield, I loved her writing and a collection of short stories including ‘The dill pickle’ and ‘Miss brill’ those tales will be forever a joy to me. I loved the idea that rather than the big… Read more
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Hop Reading
I was sitting in Costa this morning “Hop reading”. Its basically where I hop from one subject to the next in an ADHD, Jazz like riff of reading one article or link or Video and then after the hour I have been all over the place, ending up reading a completely different topic to the… Read more
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Fish and Chips by the Sea While Reading Books About the Sea
Some weekends the pleasure of being alive is just within reach and the warmness of the moment is understandable also. It’s a gift to be alive. And each moment, each breathe we take is literally the chance of a lifetime. Read more
Beach, beaches, blog, Blue mind, books, carpe diem, experiences, heat, ideas, just do it, just keep swimming, lancing, lessons, life, mentoring, newspapers, philosophy, quotes, Reading, Sea, seas, seaside, ships, Shoerham-by-sea, Shoreham-by-sea, sussex, swimming, water, waves, wisdom, wordpress, Writing -
No Crabby Pants Allowed, Only Happy Clams
As I write this post the bank holiday weekend still has half of Monday left but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that it has been one of my best long weekends for ages. I am at peace with ‘the me’ down at the beach. Whether it be short walks on the… Read more
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Surprising Sunday
Sunday surprised me with some lovely blue skies, light winds and no rain. I suppose as it is a bank holiday that explains so many people walking up and down the beach paths. I hope you do forgive me for taking yet another photo of my Hut and path outside, I could take a photo… Read more
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OK Breathe, Orange Coloured Beach Sky
Arrived at the beach and saw this orange coloured sky as we were unpacking. The sound of the waves, the smell of the salty sea will always be a trigger for me to relax and breathe. The Friday night long drive after a long week is always worth it once we arrive and are met… Read more
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Travels With Charley: John Steinbeck
In Spanish there is a word for which I can’t find a counterword in English. It is the verb vacilar, present participle vacilando. It does not mean vacillating at all. If one is vacilando, he is going somewhere but doesn’t greatly care whether or not he gets there, although he has direction. John Steinbeck (1962) Read more
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People… Are Interested in People
This post is not a typically reflective or cerebral post but just an observation from my experience of living next to the sea. You see the photo that accompanies this post? well you have two options as you walk along the seaside path. You can look at the majestic ocean, waves, clouds, boats, planes all… Read more
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No Man Is an Island
Learning of friends losing loved ones and relatives always leaves me a little sad, even if they were not direct friends it effects us all. More than ever this poem by John Donne says how I feel right now. (excuse the use of noun ‘Man’ it was written in 1624) ((Spot the Hemingway title… ))… Read more
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Beach BBQ Done the Right Way
After missing out of most of the spring summer with Covid-19 I finally spent two weeks Staycation down the beach– and that for me means a beach barbecue! With West Sussex skies and serene sunsets, all that remains to be perfect is a Beer and a Beach BBQ. Owning a holiday home on the beach… Read more
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Beach People Know This
You don’t just spend time on the beach in the summer You are constantly told you live somewhere that people yearn to see You know that every problem is reduced by sitting near the sea When people drop rubbish on your beach you go mental Dog walkers not picking up their dog mess will result… Read more
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Thinking Near the Sea
A two week break from work at our holiday home next to the beach has been awesome, there is no better place to reflect than to sit and think in, near or on water. I don’t know why but I think better near a body of water. It fires the imagination, it provides a landscape… Read more
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Vision Needs Venture
During my days on vacation, my wife Melanie and I walked round ancient english towns. It was just before starting a new role at work. I was exploring this beautiful town and still thinking about starting my new role, (so much for being mindful) I turned a corner and looked at a magical set of… Read more
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Not My Idea of Fun
This is a scene in Bournemouth today. No thanks. Hell is other people Jean-paul Satre Read more
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UK Hotter Than the Caribbean
Every year there is a day or two where the UK Media organisations get to claim that the UK will be hotter than the Caribbean. The UK Media heatwave silly season always makes me smile when I read the claims. It suggests that people in the Caribbean or somewhere else more consistently temperate suddenly realise… Read more
