Recently I was chatting to a stranger who had, in my opinion, a very dated and passionate view on military conscription. Now like you, I am very opinionated. This means we encounter people with very different views to us. And, if we aren’t careful this can lead us to bombard them with our opinion, to … More How to really win an argument
“What did you do to get promoted?” she asked, hoping for a leadership gem. “I got lucky” I said, knowing it wasn’t the whole answer. I had just been sharing about the period of my life where I went from being a courier to a senior manager in New Zealand’s largest courier company over a … More How to get promoted!
It’s election year. This means you will hear two phrases in the media over the next 6 months. They are the terms “flip-flop” and “U-turn”. The media is exceptionally good at spotting a flip flop or U-turn in the opinion of a candidate. While keeping the politicians ‘honest’ is important, I get concerned when the … More Great Leaders Flip-Flop!
I can’t imagine what it’s like to go to war. I can’t imagine having the courage to leave my family. To say goodbye to those I love. I can’t imagine being shipped off to some distant land to fight for people you don’t know. I can’t imagine long periods in trenches. In jungles. On battlefields. Bored. Exhausted. … More I can’t imagine war
“You don’t understand,” I said partly in jest, “It has nothing to do with their fear of change. It’s ALL my own insecurities.” As soon as I heard the words leave my mouth, even though I was meaning them to bring humour, I knew they were true. I was trying to work out what my … More Letting Go
A friend of mine was sitting next to the Minister of Women’s Affairs on the plane recently and I asked him if he had asked her, if “women have many affairs?” Ok, that’s a poor shot at humour. The Hon. Jo Goodhew has an incredibly important role and I love that we are the first … More Why NZ needs a Ministry of Men’s Affairs
Today is ANZAC day in New Zealand. Today we remember ordinary men who became heroes. Men who fought and died so that their generation, and those that followed might be free from oppression and evil. On this day we remember what it costs to have freedom; our countries freedom; our children’s freedom; your freedom. And … More Our Freedom came at a cost.
Freedom is never free. Freedom comes at a cost. Many many people have died that we might have the freedoms we enjoy. And one man died that we might have the freedom we where created for. Easter and Anzac together. A reminder how blessed we are to be free.
I love how my team put up with my somewhat eccentric 365 photo project habits. Driving into Wellington after a fleeting trip to Christchurch and Wendy graciously stops the car so that I can get my photo of the day. I couldn’t miss it. I mean how often do you get to Wellington with … More 294 |365 Stop the car
Energy amazes me. Take coal or gas and set fire to it (energy), convert that energy to electricity (energy), turn on a switch at home and the heater comes on (energy). In the industrialised world, using unsustainable fuels were the norm. Then they built huge power stations like this one at Huntly. After all you … More 278 |365 Energy
I can’t remember my first day at school, but my dad can. He was told off for eating his lunch at morning-tea time. Told off as in 1940’s told off. Schools have changed significantly over the years. They are more creative, more interactive, with better teaching and more opportunities. They have also made huge … More 246 |365 Strength based schooling
When your kids are 3 they are all artists. Regardless of how recognisable their drawing is we encourage them over and over again as they mass-produce their drawings and scribbles and … art. By 10 many kids will realise that they don’t draw as well as other kids and by the late teens, you … More 178 | 365 Art
I was talking to an ex-colleague the other day who fulfilled her dream and went to Costa-Rica. She said that she stayed with a really poor family by some beech for 2 weeks, and they were the so incredibly happy. Poor happy people! Then I found a recent article that states a full 27 Million Americans … More Those poor happy people…
Malcolm Gladwell’s book ‘Tipping Point’ speaks of single events that then trigger other unrelated people to do similar things. I have been wondering if the Hawkes Bay Police siege might be a Tipping Point. There have been a couple weird shootings that Police have been involved since the siege in Hawkes Bay with Jan Molenaar. … More Tipping Points. Positive and Negative!
I think there is little doubt that the economy is slowing. Christmas spending, and therefore transport volumes, where very late. Figures just out from show that Retail EFTPOS transactions are down in January. Add to that an election year and high fuel and interest rates and it can only but slow down. This is further … More The year ahead…
People Matter ∴ Do Good 