Resilience and wisdom to stay happy in the years ahead
Raising resilience has been a focus of my work for several years, and Chris is one of my inspirations. Sometimes I wonder if the troubles of our times will keep growing faster than our capacity to handle them, but Chris’s book offers us all the chance of a big step-up in our resilience. Chris is … Read more
We’d better find them, since it’s already happening! You might call me an anxious optimist: I worry a lot about the state of the world, but I cling to a belief that there’s an upside to the challenges, if only we can find it. That belief is hard to sustain these days, so I’m writing … Read more
Still useful, 24 years on! This catchily-titled book was published in 1987, and was a management best-seller for years. Even then, new technologies, speed of change, intensifying competition were big issues. Whilst Tom Peters’ insights may not address all our current challenges, they’re worth revisiting. In this blog, I’ll explore how they might apply to … Read more
Why reshaping the finance system is key to climate change. Since late 2018, my work has increasingly focused on climate adaptation: Jem Bendell’s Deep Adaptation approach has deepened my view of the crisis, but has also helped me to see ways I can respond actively. You can see more about my 2020 plans here: Throughout this … Read more
This is how business can be the driver of positive climate change In my frequent episodes of anxiety about climate change, this is a favourite book I turn to for encouragement. Amazingly, it was published in 1993 even then, the climate crisis and the pivotal role of business was clear if you chose to look … Read more
How individuals and communities can grow through tough times This is one of the few books I’ve read on climate change responses that I’d call encouraging and inspiring. Doppelt is an unusual character, who works as both a counselling psychologist and an environmental scientist, combined with socially engaged Buddhism. His book is a good bridge … Read more
The lockdown has given most of us a gift of more time. You may need no help in filling it with worries or distractions, so here are my ideas about the positive possibilities. Radiate love: My experience of the lockdown is that simply sending out love is one of the most helpful steps we can all … Read more
By Eva Selhub and Alan Logan This is an important and exciting book in my view, as it gives extensive research validation for the natural happiness approach, and the aims of Hazel Hill Wood as a natural learning centre. This will be a longer blog than most, because I’d like to highlight the main insights … Read more
Eigg is a small island in the Hebrides: five miles by three, with 100 inhabitants. Try adding to your resilience challenges: harsh climate, high transport costs, poor soil, and … a series of despotic landlords. However the gift was in the problem: the despots provoked Eigg’s people into creating the first community land buyout in … Read more
Can we trace an emerging future? Surely most of us have often been bewildered and disoriented in the past seven months. If someone had shown us a picture of life in Covid a year ago, we would never have believed it. Trying to make sense of the story so far, and where the plot line … Read more