Something I've known for a very long time is that I need to spend more time being still. Time doing nothing but pausing to think. There are plenty of great examples (not least among which Stefan Sagmeister's superb TED talk) of the times when we're able to stop and think becoming launchpads for the successful … Continue reading Movement as meditation
Author: Richard
Hi, I’m Richard and I’m a regular, middle-aged guy who thinks a lot.
I believe that, regardless of how we currently see ourselves, each of us has something amazing we can contribute to the world. That we each have a unique purpose for which we were made, and I’m on my own journey to find out what that means for me.
This blog is a place to share those experiences and hopefully to encourage great people like you as well. I write about self-improvement, the search for purpose, life, faith, all sorts really.
As far as we know (and without wishing to start a religious debate) we only get one go on this ride a few times around the sun.
So as the poet Mary Oliver very wisely asked:
"Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?"
The open ocean
One of my favourite books is James Cracknell and Ben Fogle's "The Crossing". It tells the story of the authors' attempt at the Atlantic Rowing Race in which, inexperienced and unprepared, they rowed almost 3,000 miles from the Canary Isles to the West Indies. It's incredible and inspiring stuff. The overwhelming feelings I took from … Continue reading The open ocean
The notebook: analogue in a digital world
I am definitely one of life's note-takers. Over time, keeping notes has become one of the most important practices in helping me to live an intentional life, seek purpose and work effectively. Whether I'm in a meeting, at church, in a cafe or whatever, I always have a notebook with me. I write things down … Continue reading The notebook: analogue in a digital world
On balance
Take your pick. Get off the fence. Choose a side. But I was made for balance. I'm equally at home in the country or the city. In the UK or abroad. In silence or with other people. I live in the space between the two and my life is the richer for it. Do we … Continue reading On balance
In praise of monotonous work
This week, I've been taking advantage of the lovely weather to get some outside DIY done. The front of our house was starting to show its age and so some serious TLC has long been in order. By far the biggest job has been leveling the front garden to widen our existing driveway. Older kids … Continue reading In praise of monotonous work
Purple Cow
One of the benefits of being at home more these days is the time to do a lot of reading. I've always been an avid reader but in recent years, time with a book (or more often these days, my Kindle) has been squeezed into the margins of the day by the busy-ness of life. … Continue reading Purple Cow
When will it end?
That's what a lot of people in the UK and worldwide are wondering now. When will the lockdown end? When can we get back to normal after COVID-19? Despite numerous best estimates and rumours, the honest answer is that no one knows. Indeed it is such a complex situation that realistically, no one can be … Continue reading When will it end?
Looking backwards and moving forwards
I'm going out on a limb here, but I'm a little uneasy with the VE Day celebrations planned for next Friday. Something feels wrong to me about flag-waving and celebrating the "winning" of a war in which millions died. A war which sowed the seeds of the breaking up of the British Empire (which ironically, … Continue reading Looking backwards and moving forwards
Show up daily and do the work
A couple of months ago, I was chatting to a colleague who's about the same age as me. We were looking back on our twenty-odd year careers since university and how many different experiences we'd each had in that time. Some good, many hard and some a real drudge, but all of which had helped … Continue reading Show up daily and do the work
Working after COVID-19: A manifesto*
I posted up this blog article on LinkedIn recently, wondering what the new normal might look like after COVID-19. Having read it, leadership coach Bob Gibbon challenged me to write a manifesto for work after this pandemic is over. Thinking about my own experience since the lockdown and what I've see in my own circle … Continue reading Working after COVID-19: A manifesto*
That Richard Bloke 