notes
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The Slipway
Every boat, sooner or later, has to come out of the water. Not because anything has gone wrong, but because the things that slow a boat down are the things its owner stopped noticing long ago. A little seaweed here, a few barnacles there, and one morning you realise you have been sailing for years… Read more
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Ordinary Days
Ask most people about their life and they will tell you about the big days: weddings, births, the first job, the house move, the funerals. They are the days we photograph and come back to. But if you count them, there are not many. Most of a life is made of days nobody would think… Read more
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Rests Are Part of the Score
There is a line often attributed to Debussy: that music is the space between the notes. I can’t find it in anything he wrote, and it gets credited to others too. I have decided not to mind. For most of my life I have believed the notes were the point. The meetings, the decisions, the… Read more
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Opposite the Sunflowers
I sit on the bench opposite Sunflowers once a month, give or take. Usually on the way back from something in London. Train into Charing Cross, ten minutes in Room 43, train home. A small private detour. You get blocked, sitting on that bench. People walk up and stand in front of you and you… Read more
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The Algorithm and Samuel
She was ahead of me in the coffee shop, phone in one hand, oat flat white in the other. Talking with her friend. “Honestly? I just trust the algorithm. It knows what I’ll like better than Samuel ever did.” Samuel, I assumed, was her local bookseller. Or maybe the friend who used to slip her… Read more
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The One Who Didn’t Know Any of That
People don’t usually tell you when your writing is good. They just read it and move on. So when someone takes the time to say something, you notice. What I started noticing was this. When people mentioned a post, it was always the same ones. The street sweeper my mother pointed out when I was… Read more
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When Time Gets Short, Work Gets Better
Most good work doesn’t happen in perfect conditions. It happens with just enough pressure to focus the mind. A little adrenaline. A deadline close enough to matter. Not panic. Not chaos. Just the awareness that time is limited and already running. That awareness changes things. Distractions fall away. The unnecessary options quietly disappear. You stop… Read more
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Write to Live Better
If you want a life filled with skill, productivity and creativity, think carefully about what really matters. This leads to genuine engagement. Don’t accept a life that is tough, empty, and short-lived. And the best way to think clearly is to write. Writing sharpens your thoughts. It catches vague ideas before they slip away. It… Read more
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Who Shows Up When It’s Hard
It’s easy to be someone’s friend when it costs nothing.A quick Gchat. A shared laugh. A joke liked, a thumbs up sent.Convenient, comfortable, light. But real friendship shows itself when it’s anything but convenient.When it asks for your time when you’re busy.When it interrupts your plans.When it makes you stand up for someone when staying… Read more
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Bad Days Happen
Bad days happen. Expect them. It helps. Marcus Aurelius did. He reminded himself every morning that people would be rude, unfair, selfish. He wasn’t surprised when they were. He was ready. You can’t control traffic, gossip, deadlines that slip. You can control your response. That’s the whole game. Epictetus would say: Focus where your hands… Read more
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Falling Is Not Failing
Lessons are everywhere in life, even in teaching kids to ride a bicycle. You hold the seat. You run beside them. You shout encouragement.They wobble. They fall. You steady. You let go. They ride on before falling. As they hit the ground, the realization hits you. This is what they’ll always need.The right amount of… Read more
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What You’re Not Chasing, You’re Choosing
You say it’s not the right time. You say you’re focused elsewhere. You say you’ll come back to it later. But here’s the truth: What you’re not chasing, you’re choosing. Choosing comfort over growth. Certainty over possibility.The known path over the one that calls you. Not chasing doesn’t mean standing still. It means moving in… Read more
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The Third Seat at the Table
You’re delivering a project for a customer. You’re working with a partner. And things get bumpy. You don’t always agree with their approach. They don’t always understand your product. Frustrations build. And then it happens.The tension shows. In meetings. In emails. Sometimes, even in front of the customer. You think You’re being subtle.You’re not. When… Read more
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What We Do Next
The big important meeting went well. People showed up. They listened. They contributed.Real conversations happened. The kind you remember. But the point of a valuable meeting isn’t the offsite.It’s what happens after. Insight without follow-up is theatre.Alignment without execution is a mirage. The work now is simple, but not easy: Pick what matters. Turn it… Read more
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The Kindness Trap
There’s a certain kind of politeness that turns sour. It says: I won’t challenge your work because I don’t want to hurt your feelings. But withholding critique isn’t kindness. It’s fear in disguise. If you’re showing up and doing your best work, then you deserve more than approval. You deserve feedback. You deserve someone brave… Read more
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Less Frosting, More Cake
A senior leader gave me feedback Friday. The kind that stays with you. He said something like:“Your writing is thoughtful. But it’s too flowery. Too complex. You bury the point.” Ouch.And… fair. So I’ve decided to try and change. From now on, I’m aiming for writing that’s simpler. Sharper. Shorter.Not less meaningful, just more direct.… Read more
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The Team Is Everything
I remember reading this once in a book: “A group is a bunch of people in an elevator. A team is a bunch of people in an elevator—but the elevator’s broken!.” It made more sense the second time I read it this week. Because a group just shares space. A team shares responsibility. The group… Read more
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How Non-Negotiables Shape Your Career Path
Know your no. Every career comes with choices. Not just what you do, but what you won’t. Your non-negotiables define the edge of the map.They’re your “no matter whats.”Without them, you drift.With them, you steer. Mine? It is Impact. My thinking on Impact Some people chase promotions.Some chase applause.Some just want to keep the peace.… Read more
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Plant Your Feet and Not Be Swept Away
I’ve been reading The Storm Before the Storm by Mike Duncan, a vivid account of the slow unravelling of the Roman Republic before anyone realized how fragile it had become. While I was reading, I remembered something from earlier this year. My colleague and friend Ben and I attended a discussion on Stoicism, and the… Read more
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Understanding Overlaps
We like clean categories. Us vs. them. Good vs. bad. Winners and losers. But the world doesn’t work that way. Most of life exists in overlapping distributions. Not all rich people are smart, and not all poor people are lazy. Not all great leaders are extroverts, and not all quiet people lack vision. Even in… Read more
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