I was part of a fascinating discussion recently, hosted by WatsonHelsby, at which the author Martin Thomas took us through the thinking behind his new book 'Loose'. The basic premise is that many organisations are still suffering from the delusion they can control what people both do and think. The book had particular relevance to the many communications directors around the table, all of whom ar...
Read MoreI've recently read two books that have profoundly impacted my thinking. The first was Jonah Lehrer's 'Proust was a neuroscientist'. I have to admit that I was drawn to this book initially because of my love of Proust. But it's message is powerful. Basically Lehrer posits that when it comes to thinking about how the brain works, many of the deepest insights came from artists first and it was left...
Read MoreI've been thinking recently just how insidious truth can be. Just when you think that you can control the message, pesky old truth manages to inveigle its way to the surface. Slowly and surely, cunning old truth manages to find a way around all the obstacles that have been placed in its path. Take two current examples: firstly, the phone hacking saga. Ironically, at the same time that some peop...
Read MoreWith Christmas and a January birthday, I've had plenty of new books to get my teeth into. I've already mentioned the book by Susan Maushart in a previous post. Here's what I've made of the rest: Franzen's Freedom - disappointing. I'd been looking forward to it so much but I never really warmed to the characters or the theme. Roth's Nemisis - excellent, and so much better than Indignation. Rowan'...
Read MoreAccording to Linkedin, 29 of my contacts have changed job title in the past year. By any standards that's quite a lot. Some have taken on new positions with their existing employers, but most have moved on. A significant number of them have decided, like me, to branch out on their own. There is something hugely exciting about taking control of ones own destiny. There's also, of course, a great...
Read MoreRadio 3 are having a Mozart Fest. They're playing every note he composed over a ten-day period. At first it was magnificent, and reminded one of sheer genius of that remarkable man. And then a funny thing happened. Every time the radio was switched on it began to feel like Groundhog Day. It only goes to prove that sometimes you really can have too much of a good thing.
Read MoreIt's been difficult to avoid Wikileaks recently. Putting to one side the security issues of some the recent disclosures, what struck me about the initial leaks was just how human they were. Naively I thought what intelligence experts and diplomats were after were hard facts but it seems that softer, more emotional information is just as important. Perhaps there's a lesson for business people her...
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