Thoughts

OK. So the other night I had a very strange dream. It was my birthday, and I was in the middle of hosting a big party. In the middle of it all, I got a message saying I had to go and see my new GP. So I dutifully left my own party and tootled […]

There’s a woman I know who has brilliant ideas for how to transform the New Zealand economy so it leads the world in societal and environmental wellbeing. She’s smart. She’s visionary. Yet she’s not getting traction. Why not? She’s a lone voice. Her industry has a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. Her ideas […]

I’ve just polled the Change Makers community about how they feel about the latest Covid lockdown in New Zealand. Here are the preliminary results: This picture shows a fairly strong leaning towards ‘amazing opportunity’. In people’s comments below the poll, most people reported that they had somewhat mixed feelings. That’s how I’m feeling too. I’m […]

There’s a saying: “you’re the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” I really like that as an idea. Yet I think it can go further. What if those five people were all of the same type? Wouldn’t that just be just one person multiplied by five? How useful would that […]

“Priority is a function of context” Steven Covey I used to scuba dive. If you’ve ever done it, you’ll know the peace and tranquillity you feel when you sink beneath the surface into another world. It’s quite amazing.  That underwater world forces you to slow down. Compared to being on dry land, surrounded by air, […]

How can we be more ‘unhurriedly productive?’ That’s a question I’ve been exploring for a couple of years now. Here’s why I think it’s so important: Burnout levels are high, and on the rise. Here in New Zealand, workers work longer hours and for less reward than workers in most other OECD countries. We work harder rather than smarter. […]

  “Learn how to see” – Leonardo Da Vinci   The other day I was checking out guitars online. I’m a bit of a guitar freak, and I was with a friend who doesn’t know much about them. As I was geeking out, explaining the different body shapes and configurations, she said “I just see […]

When Naomi Osaka announced that she was not going to attend the post-match press conferences at this year’s French Open, she did me a favour. She shone a light on a status quo that I hadn’t really paid attention to before. That status quo was the requirement for professional tennis players to show up at […]

Last week I was in a session with my counsellor. Yes, I see a counsellor! He’s super-helpful to help me try to make sense of my life in a turbulent world. I was sharing with him how full-on life is right now and how it just feels non-stop. It’s like I’m always ‘on’. I’m on […]

I just watched Seven Years in Tibet. Brad Pitt stars as a headstrong mountaineer who becomes a prisoner-of-war in 1930’s Tibet. After multiple solo attempts, he escapes by teaming up with his fellow prisoners. When he’s out, he says “I’m going it alone” and runs off into the wilderness. Yet another movie upholding individual heroism. […]