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authenticity

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How to get what you want from the world – more cat stretches and fewer crunchies
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I’ve always believed that communication is the most important life skill – in and out of work. Malcolm Gladwell agrees. In Outliers, he suggests that the way we: “Get what we want from the world” is by “Knowing what to say to whom, knowing when to say it and knowing how to say it for maximum effect.” Some people get this, others not so much…. Plenty has been written recently about the differences between Sir Keir Starmer and Andy Burnham. It’s generally agreed that one of the key factors in Starmer’s demise and Burnham’s ascendency is communication – Andy’s skill…

September 12, 2026 Read more
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In the Olympics, size really does matter. For us, it’s about respecting the audience.
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One of the quirkiest stories to come out of the Milan-Cortina winter Olympics was ‘penis-gate’. According to German newspaper BILD, ski jumpers have been injecting themselves with hyaluronic acid before being measured for their suits. Apparently, this can increase the circumference by one or two centimetres. Bigger appendage, bigger suit, more surface area, increased time in the air. Who knew!!! As well as marvelling at the incredible displays of skill and daring and endurance, I was interested in the array of different types of clothing worn by the athletes. Baggy for snowboarders, streamlined for speed skaters, elegant for figure skaters….

March 2, 2026 Read more
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Don’t panic about AI. You have a human superpower. Chatting
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Am I the only one to be a tiny bit tired of discussing AI?  And, in particular, weary of the ‘catastrophising’ around it? Of course, we know that it will and is already having an immense impact on us – akin to the invention of the printing press, and we must both understand it and learn to harness it. But it’s not the only game in town. On the Today programme this week, advertising guru Sir John Heggarty spoke about its effect on his industry. Yes, it’s going to take away some mundane tasks (and that might lead to the…

June 12, 2025 Read more
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Did we warm to the Easter bunny this year, and was she qualified to deliver the eggs?
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Many of you will, of course, have enjoyed the paper on Universal dimensions of social cognition: warmth and competence as published in Trends in Cognitive Sciences volume 11, number 2!!! I actually have read it (yes, I know I need to get out more), and I was fascinated by the conclusions and their implications for the people I work with. Academics from the universities of Princeton, Northwestern and Lawrence, including the fabulous Amy Cuddy, tell us that people who are perceived as both warm and competent elicit uniformly positive emotions and behaviour from those they communicate with. And, importantly, that…

April 29, 2025 Read more
PURPLE SNOW DROP
Authenticity and humility – the keys to an audience’s attention (and wallet)
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I recently had the terrifying pleasure of MC-ing a charity fundraising ball for Home Start (Wandsworth) – a brilliant organisation which gives families a helping hand when they’re going through a rough patch. https://www.home-start.org.uk/about-us I’ve worked on corporate events for two decades so I’m ok in front of a crowd. In fact, it’s a role I relish because you can genuinely contribute to the success of a conference by making the audience feel included; by facilitating interesting conversations; by setting an appropriate tone for the occasion. At the average corporate gig, the objective of the host is to extract, solicit…

May 28, 2022 Read more
Whatever you’re doing, stop now and listen to this. It will change your mood and it might even change your life….
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As part of my 2021 Christmas greeting/present to colleagues, clients and contacts, I ran a competition asking people to nominate an exceptional piece of communication which they had come across that year. Suggestions went into a hat and I pulled out the winner this week. Thank you and well done Emily Jones for alerting me to this podcast interview with the global phenomenon and inspirational human being Mo Gawdat = https://podcasts.apple.com/jm/podcast/e101-the-happiness-expert-that-made-51-million-people/id1291423644?i=1000538174002 I urge you to listen to this NOW. Yes, it’s a masterclass in the art of communication but, more than that, he offers a practical, simple formula for achieving…

January 13, 2022 Read more
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Authenticity – is it wrong to stand up straight when we’re giving a presentation?
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Someone remarked yesterday that I’m lucky not to have been affected by the pandemic. “Why do you assume that?” I queried. “Because you always seem so cheerful” came the reply. “That’s because I’m putting on a brave face!!!!!!!!! Presenting an optimistic façade rather than revealing the sadness I feel and the tears I shed for all the pain and disappointment in the world”. “Oh, but you never show that”. I wasn’t sure if this last comment was made with an undertone of admiration or criticism. In any case, I was slightly surprised at their lack of empathy and understanding. But…

December 20, 2021 Read more
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New skills for a new ‘post-EU’ era. How to be heard, how to be confident, how to listen
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In Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers, one of the factors for success (in life generally) is knowing “what to say to whom, when to say it and how to say it for maximum effect”. That’s communication – my passion and, I believe, our most fundamental life skill. As we embark on a new era in our country, let’s take the opportunity to sharpen up our own skills and ensure that we’re “getting what we want from the world”.  Whatever role and sector we’re in, we need to be able to negotiate, persuade, charm, and impress as never before. Let’s firstly remember that…

January 30, 2020 Read more
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George Ezra, Johnson and Trump – authenticity or manipulation?
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I’ve just been accepted as a speaker at the Open University’s TEDx event in November. Exciting news. The theme is ‘Imagine what’s next’. No doubt many will be looking at technological innovation and the amazing opportunities which lie ahead. The angle of my talk is fear – a concern that while our heads are turned by technology, we are forgetting how to talk to each other and how to listen. At the heart of good communication is authenticity. In my training room we agree that we’re not learning to ‘act’ or to copy someone else’s style. To be effective and…

July 26, 2019 Read more