This week I have learned: Going for a walk is restorative The ability to just take random turns is a metaphor for my working life at the moment. It's liberating. Even more so when you secure a big new contract I need to find a way (and a venue) to bring Marcus's The Passing to … Continue reading Weeknote 366: rambling
It feels to me like attitudes towards technology are beginning to change at senior levels. There are undoubtedly a fair few senior executives who wear technological unawareness as a badge of honour in exactly the way they wouldn't if it was finance. But they are becoming rarer; most execs now understand that technology is important … Continue reading Connecting the Boardroom
There is a thought experiment that I picked up a year or so ago, and the origins are sadly forgotten. It goes a little something like this: You have found out that the world is in mortal danger. Aliens are coming. They land in 60 minutes. When they land, they will take over the planet … Continue reading The Rumsfeld Paradox
This week I have learned: Anyone who throws insults at single parents should try being a single parent for a short period of time. Running sessions via video and web is so much more tiring that running them in person. I'm getting even more curmudgeonly about the use of the word "Talent" when people really … Continue reading Weeknote 365: A year’s worth
This week I have learned: Being 47 is pretty much identical to being 46. The Dutch language makes me snigger. Bitcoin is actually dangerously stupid. By 2020 at current rates of growth it will consume all electricity. Already it consumes the equivalent of Morocco. Even in our highly connected world, it's possible to be a … Continue reading Weeknote 364: annuities
I heard yesterday of a couple of companies with whom I've worked falling victim to something of a scam artist, purportedly offering to help them with business development. I was also recently chatting to someone who was relatively new into the world of free range working, and exploring how I go about selling. The thing … Continue reading Always be selling
Somewhere in a parallel universe... When we first pitched for the job it felt, to a great extent, like just about any other public sector gig. It paid fine, but there were constraints that we had kind of got used to in how many boundaries we might be able to push. The pitching process was … Continue reading Pushing social boundaries
This week I have learned: A surprising number of people still seem to think that work and fun are mutually exclusive concepts I've done too many speaking gigs recently. Workshops need listening and observing rather than chat Play, Learn, Facilitate couldn't have been timed better. Thanks Abi, Ben, Stephen & Simon! Lego is remarkable in its … Continue reading Weeknote 363: rapid switching
I had a great hour or so earlier this week listening to Rowland Manthorpe from Wired talking about the future of money at the inaugural The New Normal session. Rather than the a la mode of talking about distributed ledgers and crypto currencies, Rowland focused instead on data - at the core of his argument … Continue reading The future of money
This week I have learned: delaying contact with the people you're trying to get to work differently is always a bad idea. faced with a choice when not used to it, people will panic. That's a reason to help them to choose, not to remove the choice. this Freerange working lark can at times feel … Continue reading Weeknote 362: winter arrives
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