Asked to design the kitchen for a great banquet Leonardo Da Vinci (1452 – 1519) set about a master plan. What was meant to be a kitchen that ran like clockwork actually turned out to be a complete mess. The great ox, whose job it was to walk around in circles and drive the pumps…
The doctor said “He won’t see the night out”. This was within earshot of the young Milton Erickson (American psychiatrist and psychologist, 1901 – 1980) who was lying paralysed in bed riddled with polio fever. Hearing his mother weep the teenager vowed there and then in anger that he would survive the night and prove…
When I was in my teens I made the decision to buy and wear a pair of white trousers – as decisions go that wasn’t too bad. However, I also made the decision to wear red underpants with those same white trousers, don’t ask me why! To this day I can still hear the laughter…
My mum had recurring cancer. It came and went but returned again. Sadly we reached the point when the hospital gave her the inevitable news and said “where would you like to die, here or at home?” and Mum replied “Home”. The hospital staff was amazing; they got her home and settled before taking me…
The sad truth about gossiping You have seen this happen time and time again when you have worked in any large organisation. A new recruit starts work, and they appear to be fresh, unique and full of enthusiasm, yet some 30 to 40 days later they begin to sound just like everybody else on the…
Lost in the mountains of southern Spain is no fun. Taken the wrong turn. Found myself attempting to turn around in a hired car on the steepest slope ever. Lost for hours with a sat nav that was just playing with my emotions was worth the: £2,500 fee I was about to pay Flights Hotels…
A teacher and a doctor got chatting in Paris to discover that they both loved painting. The doctor said “you should come to stay at my home in Africa because the landscapes are magical”. The teacher quickly replied “What a lovely idea, I have a week of conferences and need a break; I’ll take you…
“To think or not to think, that is the question” I found myself casually thinking recently about becoming 30 years old and then suddenly realised that actually I will be 48 this year. Life seems to speed up the older you get. Which got me thinking, what is it that causes this effect? Now let’s…
Success always seemed just out of reach Disappointed, Steve walked out of the interview feedback meeting. Once again he had been turned down for promotion. Anger built up inside and his head was screaming “what went wrong?” He was a conscientious hard worker who willingly put in extra hours. The real kicker was that he…
