Release The Pressure

Everyone knows the apocryphal story about how many words for snow there are in the Inuit language
The point is, lots of languages have special words (or great long lists of them) to define experiences unique to their culture.
Take the Japanese for example.
They have a word, ‘karoshi’ which means ‘death by overwork’.
I find it fascinating that such a word could even exist, since the concept itself has to be prevalent enough to warrant being named in the first place.
But as the pressures we face seem to grow with every passing day,
I wonder how far we are from a time where the Oxford English Dictionary will need to be updated with a direct translation for ‘karoshi’.
Overwork is an interesting thought – I’ve said before that too much of anything is too much.
And that principle applies to work as well.
Longer hours, heavier workloads are very rarely the solution.
After all, you can work all the hours in the day, but the task will keep expanding to fill whatever time you have.
We need to be more disciplined about the way we work and the way we allocate our time.
So take a step back, look at what you’re trying to achieve and figure out a plan to deliver it.
Before you know it, the pressure will have eased up and you’ll actually have time to pursue other interests.
I’m going to use mine to study Japanese.

Putting The Work In Networking

The next time you’re at an industry event ask yourself whether you’re networking or notworking.
A room full of people means countless opportunities to make connections, arrange meetings and sell your company’s capabilities.
It doesn’t mean standing in the corner inspecting your shoes or waiting for the waiter to pass by with another tray of nibbles.
A lot of people mistakenly think that an evening ‘networking’ is like catching up with friends over a drink.
It’s not.
It’s like pitching and speed-dating rolled into one.
It’s hard work, and if it’s not then you’re doing it wrong.
On the 6th Anniversary of his election to Governor its appropriate to mention Arnold Schwarzenegger.
When he first went to Hollywood with the dream of becoming an actor, the 240 pound former Mr Universe understood the importance of networking.
He treated it like any other job, he did it very day, he dressed for it, he arranged meetings, and made sure he was ready to talk himself up to anyone who could help him achieve his goal, he was relentless.
I think Arnold and I are similar in a lot of ways.
I’ll be back.

Let's Take It Again From The Top

There’s an old saying about failing to prepare…
And although everyone’s heard it a million times, I’m amazed at how many people ignore its advice.
Remember my son, Fox (on stage, west end show, Billy Elliott) even though he’s in the show 2 or 3 times a week, he rehearses every day.
Even when you know your performance, your pitch, your presentation, there’s always room for improvement.
Life may not be a rehearsal, but you’ll have a better business life if you put in the hard work and prepare