Sunday 21 October 2012

Shake to send negativity flying

My column in the Herald Express 18th October......

WHENEVER I write publicly it is my intention to end each time on a cheerful note, which sometimes, sadly, does take an effort.

I happened to call on a friend the other day who commented that my words were perhaps a little on the dark side. Of course, I pointed out the bit about always ending on a positive note to which he replied: "Not everyone gets that far!" A good point well made.

Of course at this time of year actually being cheerful can be a little elusive as the days get shorter and dark evenings seem to arrive too soon after lunch. Add to that the seasonal dampness after a shockingly soggy summer then indeed that cheerful grin becomes even more elusive.
Then I remember the daily message from my wonderful dog. I'm the first one up in the morning and there to greet me is the tail-wagging Marley.



We jog (well sort of jog) to the paper shop regardless of the weather. Too often these days the short paper run is horribly wet, but that doesn't bother Marley in the least. So how does he deal with the damp before entering the house? By a really rigorous shake of his coat which sends spray in all directions.
In so many ways I feel we should all do the same as the pressures of daily life seem to soak the spirit. Just give yourself a good psychological shake (you could do it physically as well) and send the negativity flying.

I'm smiling as I write this, so there must be something in it, or so it seems to me. Although I've taken a battering recently, as regular readers will know, the wallowing in self pity is not an option.
It must never be an option because it serves no purpose. I used to coin the phrase 'walking around with a face like a slapped kipper' at times when the smile is hard to find and yet a happy face is so pleasing. But gosh, it's hard at times.

So there you go Michael (he's the man who worried that people wouldn't get to the positive message at the end of my script), a positive start.

Mind you, I've seen some good stuff locally recently that really has lifted my spirit.
I had to smile the other day when visiting Hallett's the Bakers, with Adrian Sanders MP, when we came face to face with a giant pasty. This pasty is a real beast and it is now my ambition to get it into the House of Commons canteen. It was big enough to feed two and might in some way contribute to the slowing of endless torrent of empty political rhetoric.

Another smile radiated after Viv and Pete Fisher of the Villa Marina Guest House in Torquay won an award at the recent hospitality awards. They work hard and offer a brilliant service which is why people come back to them time and time again. I love our guesthouse culture because it celebrates exciting individuality and sparkling variety of choice. If you ever get the chance do have one of Pete's breakfasts and you will then know what I am talking about.

So, with all this in mind I found myself flicking through the Herald Express and attempting to find a common theme that somehow captured the essence of our community. Of course it is all too easy to take pops at those things that annoy and that is, I guess, human nature.

But here's the thing. If you are going to comment just make certain that you have something to offer s an alternative. It's so very hard when you've been beavering away only to have your efforts rubbished by a negative comment. Most of us are quite happy with supportive criticism but wince when the words are spiteful. I guess that the bottom line is that if you have nothing good to say then be quiet.

The other day I happened to be at a South West Innovation Centres breakfast event at Cockington Court where Dirk Rohwedder of Dartington School for Social Entrepreneurs was speaking.
The thrust of what he was saying was about building a platform for business development that was for the greater good of the whole community.

I noticed that the folk attending included Mark Green of Fruition, Nicola Fox of the Riviera International Conference Centre, Angela George of IMS (local Woman of the Year) and knew that I was in good company. The energy within the building was atmospheric and that really did bring a smile to my face.

These are hard times and recent energy price increases tend to be like a punch in the stomach.
Perhaps we can all fight back by adding an extra layer and reducing the amount of bonus revenue being extracted by the gatekeepers. We still have the small few taking too much from too many.

Hopefully, despite my friend Michael's comment, you are still reading and will face the morning mirror with a smile.

Friday 19 October 2012

South Devon University Technical College Consultation


There is a public consultation meeting at South Devon College on Thursday 25th October. To gather more information and to book a place please follow this link:


The detail above will give you some idea of what is on offer, so please do try to make the time. Your view does matter!






Friday 5 October 2012

Not a time for sitting back


My column in the Herald Express this week

I've taken a battering over the past few weeks with one thing and another and find myself writing this with very little energy left for anything more than simply touching the glass screen of my iPad.


Big stuff has been going on including the fact that the company I founded with my brother-in-law has ceased trading. Harbour Sports is yet another retail casualty in the deeply troubled fiscal landscape. We live in curious times with daily reports of folk falling off the edge and that hurts.

A few years ago I featured in a video made for a local legal firm offering advice for people facing redundancy. My take on the subject was that we always need to be positive, which given the catastrophic impact of job loss is hard to do. Having to face the fact that you are not needed in the team, telling your family and those around you that you have lost your job is not easy. The interviewer said that it was all very well for me to say that because I had my own business. My answer was that in these uncertain times that couldn't be taken for granted because everything could change in the blink of an eye, and change they did! Harbour Sports fell over.

In the words of Biblical text, that time had come to pass and I found myself telling staff that their jobs had gone, closing the doors and going through an insolvency process which is still going on. All emotionally draining and curiously also physically challenging. It's not the way I thought things would pan out, but then I guess that is true for many these days.

Harbour Sports, after 35 years, had become something of an institution and messages of support have arrived from all over the world. People can be very kind.

So why am I telling you this? Well, it made me reflect upon changes locally and, in particular, a comment made by a lady who lived in Torbay many years ago and has recently moved back. She couldn't believe how the place had changed and how the vibrancy seems to have seeped away. I have a certain empathy with that feeling since I remember times when the area seemed to share a common heartbeat. Certainly in the early days of Harbour Sports the community energy was highly infectious and the English Riviera seemed to sparkle.

Ah, you might say, everything looks better when you look back and the sun is always high in the sky. Perhaps it does. But if her observation is correct then I think that we need to worry. These are difficult times as our political leaders keep telling us. Certainly, personally, at the moment I feel that the gradient is a little too steep. Hmm, and so it is.

So do we simply hunker down and wait for the pain to pass? I think not! This is not a time for sitting back and quietly waiting until the gentle heating of the lethargy pool that leaves us all struggling to swim. What's a lethargy pool? Of course, it doesn't exist but I want you to think about the changes around us that create a feeling of lethargy. The things that seem to drag you down and like Harry Potter dementors suck the life energy from you!

Job losses, rising utility bills, increasing food prices, poor weather, the harbingers of economic gloom and those that walk around looking so glum all add to a feeling of communal lethargy. I have many reasons for feeling glum just now but don't want to lose the smile.

I remember chatting with Debra Searle, soon after her epic solo paddle across the Atlantic, about setting your day. Doing what she did required huge inner strength and we can all learn from that.

In another part of my life I teach people who will go on to become counsellors, mentors and life coaches. My starting point is to get them to celebrate each day and to 'set' each day first thing in the morning. It's about deciding what sort of day you want to have.

Now it is more than likely that things will happen to knock you off course, but that shouldn't worry you too much because often it simply adds to the excitement.

Have a go at this tomorrow morning. When you reach the mirror do check for a reflection. That is always, in my opinion, worth doing. If there is no reflection you've either dropped off the edge during the night and it your spirit looking for you or you have become a vampire. If it is the latter then a whole new career awaits you.

Of course you will see your reflection and, hopefully, you will recognise what you see.

Now smile and get on with the day.

Don't let the dark side spoil your journey.