According to Frigyes Karinthy, everyone in the world is separated from everyone else by six degrees of separation. You know some people and they now some other people and they know some others etc. until eventually everyone knows everyone. In my peregrinations of late I am becoming more convinced that this is true, People I … Continue reading Six degrees of database separation
Don’t bury people under pyramids
Five thousand years ago the Egyptians buried people under pyramids. Businesses have been doing the same ever since. It is an old joke. The first time I ever heard it though was from Stephen Kelly, CEO of Sage and he was giving the keynote presentation at that year’s Dynamo conference. Everyone laughed yet it is … Continue reading Don’t bury people under pyramids
Housing shortage
Housing shortage, what shortage? Every time I turn on the television or follow a news feed there is someone banging on about a housing shortage. It is clearly true to a large extent. There are not enough homes available in the UK for people to buy. This is is reflected in the cost of housing … Continue reading Housing shortage
Honest work
Some friends of ours have a house that they are renovating. It is in a small faded village close to the sea. It is a work in progress. They have decided to do as much of the work that they can themselves, both in a bid to keep costs down but, more importantly, to put … Continue reading Honest work
Three types of fun
There are three types of fun. I heard this on Countryfile (don’t judge me) but I did not catch the presenter’s name. Type 1 fun is something that is fun all the time, from start to finish, fun now and fun later. Type 2 fun however is something that doesn’t seem like fun at all … Continue reading Three types of fun
Channel shift again
When I look back through the canon of my blogs, there are over twelve hundred of them, a regular topic is channel management. It is something I keep coming back to. Well, you don’t expect me to write on a completely different topic every time do you? The reason I write about it regularly is … Continue reading Channel shift again
Lessons from La Vuelta
La Vuelta a España for me is the second most important of the three grand cycling tours of the year. I have been watching the Tour de France for many years and it has defined the start of the summer proper, while the Vuelta has come to mark the end of the season. I have … Continue reading Lessons from La Vuelta
A woman at the chemists
The woman behind the counter asked me a very unusual question. You see, I had popped into Boots the chemist near the Monument in Newcastle. I wanted to buy some pain killers and for some peculiarly British tradition there is a ritual that we have to go through. The tablets contain codeine, which can be … Continue reading A woman at the chemists
Lower leagues
There is something enjoyable about lower league football. Away from the glamour and the glitz of the premier league, with its mega stars and obscene budgets there is still a lot that the beautiful game has to offer. It is not that I get to a lot of games. I would not call myself a … Continue reading Lower leagues
Welcome pack
When I was in the office products trade I came up with what I thought was a cracking idea. At the time I was the general manager of the depot in Newcastle and it was my job, among others, to make sure that the business grew and returned a profit. The idea was not original, … Continue reading Welcome pack
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 