The Overexamined Life

The Overexamined Life

Human beings have seen the value of self-reflection for a very long time. Nearly three millennia ago Siddharta Gautama noted that “it’s better to conquer oneself than a thousand men in battle”, as part of his enquiry into the human condition that came to be...
Why scheduling fails

Why scheduling fails

If you are relying on a schedule to force you to act — to practise a skill or a craft— you are not scheduling to practice, but practising to schedule. It’s not that scheduling isn’t a useful thing to do. Rather, scheduling is only useful to the person who has already...
5 types of corporate personality

5 types of corporate personality

An organisational team is rarely easy to manage, let alone be a part of. It is a complex mixture of unique individuals and styles, but there are patterns. Here are 5 common of corporate personality types — each of which comes with its own leadership challenge —an...
The Big Red Bus Problem

The Big Red Bus Problem

I recently got my driver’s licence after having put it off for many years. Apart from the tricky business of navigating big UK roundabouts, it turned out that I had an aversion to buses. My driving instructor would frequently ask me why I was slowing down upon seeing...
On happiness and regret

On happiness and regret

To chase happiness — whether through excess wealth, status achievements or spiritual attainment — is to live in regret. Constantly having our eye on some future prize produces the psychological feeling of missed opportunity and scarcity. The feeling that we need to...