Spoon by Spoon
Here they all are. There’s no order, other than I wrote the first one first and the second one second…. you get the picture. If you fancy going back to the start of all of these, then head for the bottom of this page. But don’t feel obliged to, you could just as well rummage around and read what you like.
Why eating salad isn’t enough
I’ve just finished reading Sheryl Turkle’s Reclaiming Conversations – Power of Talk in a Digital Age. Turkle is a Professor of the Social Study of Science and Technology at MIT. She’s spent 30 years studying people’s relationships with technology and her book is a great read. But if you haven’t got time here’s a summary: putContinue reading “Why eating salad isn’t enough”
When science is art and art is science
When I rocked up to a school chemistry class my teacher would sigh. I was good at English and history, art and music. But I was terrible at science. Physics was within touching distance if I really stretched. But chemistry? However hard I tried, I couldn’t work it out. Physics interacted with the world IContinue reading “When science is art and art is science”
Industrialising food and people: why it needs to stop
There are 300,000 edible plant species on the planet. Yet 60% of our plant-based calories are from wheat, corn and rice. The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization says that 75% of our food is made up of five animals and twelve plants. And we’re losing plants all the time. Since the 1900s, 90% of the US’s native fruit andContinue reading “Industrialising food and people: why it needs to stop”
Why this isn’t the time to set resolutions
Rain, rain, go away, Come again another day. Rain, rain, rain. It’s been falling for days. I look out at the leaden sky as huge raindrops pound the windowsill and bounce heavily on the grass outside. Will it ever stop? I’ve been indoors for weeks. OK, two days, but it feels much longer. I giveContinue reading “Why this isn’t the time to set resolutions”
When giving is really receiving
With the Christmas holidays upon us, my mind turns to gift giving. I thought I’d share with you a particular type of present: a Chewbacca present. This is something we buy for ourselves under the guise of buying it for another. The name comes from the first Chewbacca present. It was selected by my husband in the late 1970s.Continue reading “When giving is really receiving”
The importance of Friends (not the sitcom)
Brown. It’s the colour of the 1970s. This is my family, all dressed up in 1974. My father an embodiment of brown, from his beard to his suit, and the rest of us with our hair, the shoes, the cushion. Even the dog is on trend. Brown is definitely à la mode. My mother andContinue reading “The importance of Friends (not the sitcom)”
Why the steep road is less travelled
Shaun is in his mid 50’s, a successful businessman and consultant. He’s also one of my Spoon by Spoon interviewees. In recent years he feels he’s lost his way a bit in his career and when we caught up months ago, he was in a reflective mood. Shaun shared lots of stories about his life.Continue reading “Why the steep road is less travelled”
How our strength comes from letting go
Every year 20,000 angry earthquakes shake the planet. If you’ve never felt one, it’s a disturbing experience. I was in New Zealand years ago during a mild one. Even that was really unsettling. Many severe earthquakes live up to their name. When the earth literally quakes, so do we. It’s fundamental to our confidence toContinue reading “How our strength comes from letting go”
Why there is no light without the dark
Here’s a multiple-choice question. How is Paloma Faith, the singer, songwriter and actress, connected with Chinese philosophy? a) Did she date a Chinese philosopher called Zhang Wei? b) Does she originate from China? c) Like Chinese philosophy, is she two thousand years old? Or, d) None of the above?* Answer: It’s d). I’ll explain below. Continue reading “Why there is no light without the dark”
Why we are supposed to sing and dance
Thank you, Tim, for introducing me to Alan. Hello Alan. Alan can’t hear me because he’s dead. Sorry, it’s true. He died in 1973. Yet his ideas are as fresh as a daisy, despite pushing up daises. I trust he won’t mind my irreverence as Alan Watts was a Buddhist and a philosopher. He alsoContinue reading “Why we are supposed to sing and dance”
What I say is not what you hear
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” George Bernard Shaw During the Korean War, a British army unit was holding a hill above an important river. But the British were on the back foot, surrounded and increasingly becoming outnumbered by the Chinese army: eight to one. The BritishContinue reading “What I say is not what you hear”
Four simple things we need to thrive
Air, water, nutrition, sleep. It’s what keeps us alive. It’s all we need. OK, I agree life wouldn’t be so much fun without the donuts, wine or Netflix. But we would endure. Survival experts use the rule of ‘threes’: we can live for three minutes without air, three days without water and three weeks withoutContinue reading “Four simple things we need to thrive “
Why sometimes we need to crack to let the light in
“Can’t find a house, my business is tanking, there’s a global pandemic and I’ve got terminal cancer. But you know… worse things happen at sea. Not much worse, but worse.” That’s my husband talking and we both find it funny. We lurk in the dark corners of black humour when things are challenging, as theyContinue reading “Why sometimes we need to crack to let the light in”
Staying true to your values — why it will help you flourish
This blog was inspired by a Headspace video on the life of a peony. A plant like a peony looks dead in the winter. But below the ground, it’s still alive. The roots, the plant’s soul, wait patiently for spring and warm weather, sending up new shoots and starting the cycle of birth again. The roots giveContinue reading “Staying true to your values — why it will help you flourish”
The crucial art of telling your story
Storytelling is literally as old as time. And the people telling those stories were around long before historians. Nicholas Read studies indigenous Australian languages at the University of New England in Australia. In this fascinating article by Scientific American he says, “It’s almost unimaginable that people would transmit stories about things like islands that are currently underwater.” AndContinue reading “The crucial art of telling your story”
Why change is so hard to notice
How do we know what is changing in our world if we can’t see things moving? It’s a distressing situation for people with Akinetospia, a condition where you can’t process moving objects. One example is a 60-year old man who was struck on the head by a pole. Afterwards he couldn’t tell that his dog was running.Continue reading “Why change is so hard to notice”
“Why be happy when you could be normal?”
‘Normal’ has a lot to answer for. We humans like to belong and our mantra is ‘don’t stand out in case you’re cast out.’ Whilst there are wonderful exceptions, we mostly want to blend in. The worlds of fashion, beauty, tech (and plenty of others) would die if we didn’t. Look the same, be the same. Just.Continue reading ““Why be happy when you could be normal?””
Having a ‘calling’: why it’s not always a good thing
Lesser Water Boatman. A beautiful name for a bug. Corixa punctata have bodies shaped like boats and legs like oars. Gold coloured backs and red eyes that darken with age. These tiny creatures skate effortlessly across the water like they’re flying. Olympians diving, punctuating the surface, leaving just a ripple. They feed on algae at the bottomContinue reading “Having a ‘calling’: why it’s not always a good thing”
Running away or running towards? Why it’s important we know the difference
“I was much further out than you thought. And not waving but drowning.” Stevie Smith From a distance it’s hard to know why someone is running. Are they fleeing from or racing to? To the casual observer they look the same. It can be equally baffling to the runner. Some of my Spoon by Spoon interviewees areContinue reading “Running away or running towards? Why it’s important we know the difference”
Why you don’t have to fake it until you make it!
“Fitting in is one of the greatest barriers to belonging. Fitting in is about assessing a situation and becoming who you need to be in order to be accepted. Belonging… doesn’t require us to change who we are; it requires us to be who we are.” Brené Brown The mantra ‘find your tribe’ is aContinue reading “Why you don’t have to fake it until you make it!”
Stuck in a career change rut? Here’s how to get out
We’ve been cooped up for months. Cheek by jowl with our nearest and (not always) dearest. Holding our tongues, staying calm, being a grown-up when we’d rather throw our toys out of the pram. It’s hard at the best of times, worse still if we don’t like our job. Rome wasn’t built in a day.Continue reading “Stuck in a career change rut? Here’s how to get out”
Old dog, new tricks: why it’s never too late to learn something new
Neuroplasticity is the new kid on the block. It’s been around for a long time, but it’s having a second wind. A bit like the Rolling Stones. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change itself. When it’s injured or diseased it can re-route traffic to avoid roadblocks, re-organising cells or re-mapping whole areas. Neuroplasticity isContinue reading “Old dog, new tricks: why it’s never too late to learn something new”
The power of words: why we need to choose them wisely
Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. Language is a strange one. We assume it brings us together, but sometimes it pushes us apart. It can make us feel connected but it can also reveal how different we are. ‘Lost in translation’ stories can often make us laugh. ThereContinue reading “The power of words: why we need to choose them wisely”
How to rise from the ashes of the pandemic
My husband runs a small business focusing on the arts. It’s a sector in a death spiral and his clients are either in hibernation or dying. So his business needs a lift. He applied for a government backed Bounce Back loan but took his bank 60 days to respond. The computer came back with aContinue reading “How to rise from the ashes of the pandemic”
How the art of patience can turn your life around
Patience is a virtue. Virtue is a grace. Grace is a little girl who never washed her face. If I ranked the high points in my life, this wouldn’t be the top. It’s not an Oscar moment, or an exciting anecdote to tell the grandchildren. But it’s a slice of time that tells a tale.Continue reading “How the art of patience can turn your life around”
The career-shifting tale of the Silverfish, the Grasshopper and the Butterfly
Metamorphosis is a useful metaphor for career change. I was researching it for a previous blog and discovered there are three types in the insect world. Insects like silverfish are ametabolous and only change a bit — mostly they just grow larger. Grasshoppers and crickets are hemimetabolous and evolve from egg to nymph to adult. The changeContinue reading “The career-shifting tale of the Silverfish, the Grasshopper and the Butterfly”
Was your lockdown a hibernation or a transformation?
hibernate /ˈhʌɪbəneɪt/ verb (of an animal or plant) to spend the winter in a dormant state (of a person) to remain inactive or indoors for an extended period Animals hibernate when it gets colder and food starts running out. Their metabolism drops and they go into a state of torpor. Months later, when they emerge,Continue reading “Was your lockdown a hibernation or a transformation?”
Where to go for advice. And it’s not your family.
They fuck you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do. They fill you with the faults they had And add some extra, just for you. Please excuse the language. This is Philip Larkin pulling no punches in his poem, This Be The Verse. He wrote it in 1971, butContinue reading “Where to go for advice. And it’s not your family.”
Career Advice in 6 Seconds
Questions to ask yourself when you’re contemplating a change. Brevity is the new black. OK it’s not very new, but it’s definitely very popular. I wrote a 250-word blog a few weeks ago, a two-minute read that seemed to go down well. In our time-poor/attention-deficit world anything beyond a tweet is seen as overkill. We’veContinue reading “Career Advice in 6 Seconds”
Why paying attention can save you paying a heavy price
“We’ve got to do it very quickly, otherwise you’ll lose the use of your right leg.” Urgent advice from Jitesh’s surgeon. A momentous event that had small beginnings — picking up a box. Jitesh was one of my spoon-by-spoon interviewees. In 2000 he was working for a consulting firm in the Middle East. “The client hadContinue reading “Why paying attention can save you paying a heavy price”
Can career changers really learn from Star Trek?
Space: the final frontier. Familiar words if you’re into your sci-fi. That would be my husband, rather than me. In lock-down we’re currently building our compromise muscles. I get to put on Killing Eve. He gets to watch Star Trek — the 1960s version of course. If you’ve never heard of it (where have youContinue reading “Can career changers really learn from Star Trek?”
Why is resistance so irresistible?
Why do we resist what is inevitable? We all know it’s coming. We can’t stop it. But we still try. Why do we struggle with change so much? I’ve been working in change management for decades. Years of guiding people through change should have made me an expert. Yet I’m not very good when I’mContinue reading “Why is resistance so irresistible?”
The Big Idea and what you need to do (Part II)
In the first part of this blog I wrote about The Big Idea and how focusing too narrowly doesn’t create sustainable change. Instead a more successful strategy is to test out many ideas. There are a myriad of ways to work through changing your relationships, changing your career, or changing your life. It’s just a question ofContinue reading “The Big Idea and what you need to do (Part II)”
The Big Idea and what you need to do (Part I)
The first rule of The Big Idea is there is no such thing as The Big Idea. If you’ve watched Fight Club you will know this as pure plagiarism. But hey, the best ideas are there to be copied. If you haven’t seen the film (or read the book) then we can pretend the ideaContinue reading “The Big Idea and what you need to do (Part I)”
Connecting the dots: how failing can lead to success
“Everyone forgets that Icarus also flew.” This is the opening line of Failing and Flying, by Jack Gilbert. A poem reminding us that failure is often preceded by success. In the ebb and flow of our lives the two are intertwined. Gilbert ends his poem with, “I believe Icarus was not failing as he fell,Continue reading “Connecting the dots: how failing can lead to success”
65 hours in 100 words: a microblogging challenge
Last week a friend forwarded me the 100 word Microfiction 2020 challenge. It’s a competition that challenges writers around the world to create very short stories, 100 words max. The email languished in my inbox for days and when I turned my attention to it, I’d missed the deadline. So instead I thought, “Why not writeContinue reading “65 hours in 100 words: a microblogging challenge”
Collaboration: how labouring together gets you further
Collaboration is an odd word, meaning both traitorous co-operation with an enemy and working together to create something better. It comes from the Latin collaborare (col means together and laborare means to labour). Over the ages we’ve been encouraged to labour together for the benefit of society: “It is the long history of humankind…that those who learned to collaborate andContinue reading “Collaboration: how labouring together gets you further”
Where did it all go wrong? It’s probably simpler than you think.
I was 21 when I took a careers test. I didn’t do particularly well on the mechanical stuff or the diagrams. And don’t get me started on the numbers questions. The careers consultants did their bit, marked it up, and sent me back their report. In capital letters, they wrote the words: “Don’t go intoContinue reading “Where did it all go wrong? It’s probably simpler than you think.”
If you could turn back time, would you be more brave?
What if we could go back in time? I’ve found a way. I’m interviewing 100 people going through career and life changes and I ask them what wisdom they would share with their younger selves. Here are some of their pearls: “Be brave.” “Why wait? Why not start now? You don’t need permission.” “Worry less about whatContinue reading “If you could turn back time, would you be more brave?”
Small acts of kindness that can change the world
We are more and we are less. This is the strange conundrum of our lives today. We are more isolated than ever before. Nearly half of the planet is in lockdown and freedom of movement is severely restricted. The things we took for granted have been taken away. We know it’s for our own goodContinue reading “Small acts of kindness that can change the world”
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