I took my car in for a service in the first week of the year. I always look forward to seeing John at the service desk. He is a cheerful man and loves a chat, so I was slightly shocked to see him looking unusually pale and asked if he was OK.
A friend has stepped down from a voluntary post after eight years of service. So far there has been no thank you, no small speech of recognition on departure, no drinks to toast their contribution or a suggested farewell meal. There has been nothing, after eight years of volunteering. My friend is pretending not to
The world is too big for us. Too much going on, too many crimes, too much violence and excitement. Try as you will, you get behind in the race in spite of yourself. It’s an incessant strain, to keep pace… and still, you lose ground. Science empties its discoveries on you so fast that you
We’re not overly prescriptive in enforcing ‘workplace rules’ these days. Casual Friday is now blurring into Laid Back Monday and Seriously Slobby Wednesday. When managers feel compelled to say anything about dress, hairstyles or body odour, they generally put it off for the fear of crossing some line of harassment or causing offence. The standard
Another New Year has passed, and as usual, I slept through the midnight hoorays. I cannot be bothered to stay awake to see a clock move, but I admit that there is something about the ending of a year that makes me think about the passage of time.
A Headmaster in my primary school days tried hard to instil a bit of pride in us by, amongst other things, making us wear the correct school uniform and attend a highly orchestrated weekly school assembly. We marched to this in class order and received prizes for a wide variety of things worth reinforcing.
A report by Deloitte Access Economics has estimated that 39.8% of Australians aren’t getting enough sleep, a problem that may be impacting productivity at a cost of $17.9 billion or $2,418 per person per year. I don’t know how enough was determined, or who valued the link between tiredness and the cost to the economy.
Good Night, Sleep Tight and turn off that Blue Light. Read More »
I came across a column by a former Australian politician, Mark Latham, on the state of literacy in schools. He wrote ‘we are witnessing the death of student writing and reading skills. The 2018 NAPLAN results produced the weakest standard of high school writing in the 10 years of the testing process. More than one-fifth
With the greatest respect to farmers in NSW and QLD, who are facing a terrible drought, I am posting up this wonderful Australian poem by John O’Brien about pessimists and doomsayers. It is dedicated to those at work who always see a conspiracy in any announcement or change and cling like limpets to any gossip
Have you ever worked with a panic merchant? Or a drama queen? Or a person who likes to tell you how busy they are? And do they tend to solve things? Do they achieve much? Do you ever feel inclined to talk over an issue with them – just to get their calm perspective?