Thoughts

The other day, a client of mine told me she had taken a 12-month fixed-term role on an executive leadership team. “It’s great. Because I’m fixed-term, rather than permanent, I’ve got real clarity of why I’m here, and what my priorities are for the next 12 months. I can just get on with it.”   […]

When I was in my early 20s, I saw the movie Dead Poets’ Society. It changed my life. ‘Seize the day’ became my mantra. From that point on, I determined that my life would be full of worthwhile, meaningful pursuits. I’d say yes to pretty much everything just to see what I could learn.   […]

During this past week, I was on the receiving end of a couple of pieces of pretty challenging feedback. You know, the kind that makes you squirm in your boots and has you feeling downright uncomfortable. In fact, it rocked me. In both cases, it was good friends letting me know about things that I […]

    Last week’s post on Speed vs. Endurance generated a lot of feedback. In particular, I was struck by one reader’s comments on the challenge leaders face in playing the long game. I’ve reproduced his comments, with permission, in full below:   The tortoise and hare analogy is easy to apply when we are […]

“The prize doesn’t go to the fastest guy. It goes to the guy who slows down the least.”  – Rich Roll   I heard this quote from ultramarathon runner and podcaster Rich Roll the other day. It stopped me in my tracks because I’d never thought about it in quite that way before. The idea that in a […]

I’ve just finished a conversation with a volunteer cricket scorer. He’s been following the game for 30 years and has noticed how the popularity of different forms of the game have changed during this time.   This got my attention as my uncle played cricket for Australia for most of the 1960s. Back then, the […]

Here we are at the beginning of February. After the break, is your world starting to speed up again? I bumped into a client last week who told me that the calm and zen she’d experienced over the holiday period had evaporated within 40 minutes of her first day back at work. Sound familiar?   […]

One of my favourite local coffee places is Raglan Roast in Te Aro, Wellington. It’s a rustic, relaxed place that serves great coffee with a laid-back vibe.   Here’s an extract from their ‘About Us’ page:   “Offering you tasty, quality coffee with speed and at an honest price that will take you back in time.”   […]

    Time isn’t the main thing. It’s the only thing. – Miles Davis   It’s about this time of year that I hear the call around the workplace “I can’t wait for Christmas. I need a break!” Sound familiar?   There’s no question that it’s been a tough year. We’ve navigated some gnarly challenges. […]

As I’ve been running my Unhurried Productivity experiment, I’ve been researching why we hurry. Here’s my summary of what I’m learning, and, if we want to change gears, some ideas for what we can do about it. Heads up – it’s a slightly longer read than usual. I reckon it’s worth it to give the […]