We were making our way into the Metro Centre from the Debenhams end when we saw a very young boy getting into one of the fun buggies that can be hired from the customer service desk. The buggies are shaped like cars and can be pushed around while the child sits inside and pretends to … Continue reading Unconscious bias
Atlas Shrugged
Spoiler alert. I have been reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. I still am, it is a long book yet it has left me in a dilemma. At times I think it is the most fantastic of books while at others I don’t agree with some of the sentiments it contains. Perhaps that is the … Continue reading Atlas Shrugged
Our greatest resource
Rachel, a friend of mine from my Durham days posted on Twitter ‘It may be a snow day for some, however for those who are freelance and self-employed, snow days can often mean no pay days.’ She is right. For many of us who are working in the gig economy disruption can have significant consequences. … Continue reading Our greatest resource
Chimps in the Snow
The snow is such an inconvenience. It gets in the way of modern life. It messes up with our plans and turns our daily routine on its head. While it looks beautiful it is not compatible with the way that I want my life to run. As it falls and the world around me grinds … Continue reading Chimps in the Snow
Getting on in life
A reunion meeting of old school friends was an opportunity for us to vent our spleens over some of the things that get us wound up these days. It seems that the older us men get the more we rant and rave over the most silly of things. I find myself shouting at the television … Continue reading Getting on in life
Democratic free press
In a recent blog I put forward the idea that, in this country, we pride ourselves that we have a free press and that it fulfills the important role of holding governments and other institutions to account. We convince ourselves that our free press is the cornerstone of our political system. In the mother of … Continue reading Democratic free press
Go when the light turns green
I've finally worked out why there is a delay between a traffic light going green and the traffic starting to move. I don't mean when you are at the front of the line but rather when you are a dozen cars behind. Sometimes the light can change back to red again before you even move. … Continue reading Go when the light turns green
Convenience sells, convenience costs
In an earlier blog I said that subject of ethics in business had been occupying my mind, especially the failure of Carillion and the noise around the use of single use plastics. I wrote about Carillion in the earlier piece and so I am coming back to plastics. Pollution caused by waste plastics has been … Continue reading Convenience sells, convenience costs
Sunk work
One of my New Year’s resolutions was to study behavioural economics and with this in mind I have bought myself a couple of books. Well, you have to start somewhere. The first one is ‘Misbehaving’ by Richard H Thaler and I am enjoying it very much. In the book, he talks about how people have … Continue reading Sunk work
Ethics and Carillion
The subject of ethics in business is never very far from my mind these days. I am reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, which gives an exciting ride through some of the pros and cons of big business and its detractors, and had my first meeting with the board of the North East Initiative on … Continue reading Ethics and Carillion
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 