In an era where we’re constantly looking for the next "biohack" or AI-driven productivity tool, we may be overlooking one of the most powerful cognitive enhancers available to us: the simple act of reading. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute argue that literacy influences memory, attention, reasoning and even the way we process visual information. In other words, reading doesn't simply fill the mind. It changes how the mind works. I wonder if that's one reason deep readi

What does a well-lived day actually look like? Why I've been thinking about this Lately I've realised that many of my favourite days wouldn't look particularly impressive on a calendar - or in my LinkedIn feed. They rarely contain major milestones or dramatic achievements. Instead they're filled with conversations, long lunches, quiet walks, writing, laughter, football with family, or coffee that somehow turns into a two-hour conversation. It's made me wonder whether we've be

There's an assumption creeping into modern life that if something can be optimised, it probably should be. To be fair, some things can. Finding the quickest route to work. Planning the week's shopping. Deciding what deserves your attention today and what can wait until tomorrow, yes efficiency has its place. The problem begins when we start treating life itself as though it's a productivity problem waiting to be solved. My youngest son discovered this at his first conference

Feeling wired, tired, or just one notification away from losing it? Before you dive headfirst into your inbox (or out the window), try this simple breathing reset backed by a bunch of science (stop me it I get too technical) and used by your own nervous system when it needs a breather. It's called the physiological sigh, and it takes less than 30 seconds to go from chaos to calm. Here’s how to do it and why it works like magic, minus the wand. How to perform the physiological

The next time you're struggling with * remember that some people learn from experience. Others merely survive it. *What belongs in the blank for you?

One of the smallest casualties of modern technology: "This is Barb..." "Andrew here" "Emily speaking" That used to be how every conference call began. You announced yourself before contributing because the technology demanded it. Then the software got smarter, and the ritual vanished. It's a reminder that many workplace behaviours aren't culture at all. They're adaptations to the tools we happen to use. Change the tools, and eventually you change the culture.

Because They're Asking the Wrong Questions (In Under 5 Minutes a Day). I know you've seen them, clickbait headlines. Designed to trigger predictable psychological responses: curiosity, fear of missing out, surprise, identity, social proof, or the promise of an easy solution. Most clickbait headlines are built from a surprisingly small set of interchangeable templates. They're almost like LEGO bricks: [Number] + [Audience] + [Mistake] + [Secret] + [Transformation] + [Urgency]

Hold That Thought is a monthly reflection on the questions that seem to be quietly following me around. At the end of each month, I look back over everything I've written—journal entries, blog posts, conversations, coaching reflections, work notes and half-formed ideas—and look for the deeper questions hiding beneath them. These aren't necessarily questions I can answer. They're the ones I'm still living with. Each week, I'll share one of those questions in the hope that it s

(or Why Every AI Rollout Is Really a Leadership Challenge) We're spending a lot of time teaching people how to use AI. How to write better prompts. Which model to choose. When to use Copilot or Claude instead of ChatGPT. Which tasks are worth automating. Those are useful conversations, but I'm beginning to think they're not the most important ones. A recent study published in npj Artificial Intelligence caught my attention because it was about people. The researchers found th

Productivity measures time by the clock. Human connection measures it by what changed because you were together. That's why a 30-minute coffee can become a 90-minute conversation that gives you four hours' worth of laughter, perspective, encouragement, or hope. Say yes more often.

"I love deadlines. I love the whooshing sound they make as they go past." Douglas Adams Do deadlines help you think more clearly? And where do they ask you to think less? Deadlines are curious things. The same date in the calendar can motivate one person, terrify another, and leave someone else feeling guilty. Sometimes a deadline sharpens our thinking because it forces us to stop exploring and start deciding. Sometimes it narrows our thinking so much that we default to the q

(or, the conversation is the classroom) One of the things I've noticed over the years, both as a coach and as someone who teaches coaching, is that there comes a point in almost every coach's development where they start looking for the next thing. next model next framework next assessment next list of powerful questions next book that promises to unlock something they haven't quite figured out yet I understand the impulse because I had it too. When you're new to coaching, (a

It's a wonderfully ordinary forecast (I live in Singapore 28 degrees and raining is a good thing). Not "storms." Not "danger." Just a reminder that the weather is about to change. Life seems to work like that too. We spend so much energy hoping for endless sunshine that we forget rain has a purpose. It slows us down. Changes our pace. Makes us notice things we'd normally rush past (the gardeners, ducks and farmers reading this are nodding sagely at this point) On days that fo

After my recent adventures in MasterChef EzrAsia, I've learned a few lessons about protocol, behaviour and maintaining healthy relationships. Read on - and feel free to add your own advice The office potluck. Equal parts feast, friendship and food roulette Never be first in the queue. Let someone else test the mystery casserole. If nobody can identify a dish after three guesses, proceed with caution. Bringing plates, cutlery or napkins instantly upgrades you to Office Hero st

There was a stretch of time where my working day started before I'd even got out of bed. Early morning calls with one time zone, late night calls with another. And somewhere in the middle, a habit I barely noticed forming. Wake up, reach for the phone, straight into email, straight into messages, straight into whatever crisis had materialised overnight. No breathing. No stretching. No easing in. Just immediate immersion in other people's urgency. My physical and mental health

The fortune cookie gave me a pithy reminder recently. As I look back at my life, it is the the challenges that stretched me the most - losing a loved one, struggling in a job, seemingly drifting while seeking direction - that taught me the most and gave me the greatest boost. And if you see yourself dealing with the hard, unglamorous or unsexy, keep going!

Learning Is Not a Spare-Time Activity We often think development is a resource problem. Give people a budget, access to courses (and books, platforms, and learning tools etc) and they'll learn. But people don’t act on resources. They act on conditions. And money is just one condition. Time Permission, and Structure matter just as much. I recently heard a leader say he allocates €1,000 per employee for development. But only about half his people actually use it. So he budgets

There was a period in my career where I responded to messages within minutes. Always. Evenings, weekends, mid-conversation with someone standing right in front of me. I told myself it was professionalism. It wasn't. It was anxiety wearing a productivity costume. Always on. Always helpful. Always reachable. Sounds virtuous, right? But your nervous system doesn't experience constant availability as a virtue. It experiences it as a low-grade threat, I could be needed at any mome

“Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.” Omar Khayyam Today is the happiest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. The weather is getting warmer and sunnier and days are longer so people linger outside a little more, we can even sit with our windows open*. Everybody feels good. and as Kurt Vonnegut said, “... I urge you to please notice when you are happy, and exclaim or murmur or think at some point, ‘If this isn’t nice, I don’t know what is.’” So, for you

A marketing manager I know ends every webinar with a list of options: White paper. Free consult. Recording. Research report. “Not applicable at this time.” And he recently shared that a friend of his had tested one tiny change. They moved “Not applicable at this time” to the top. Replies increased. It turns out that despite our belief that humans are rational choosers. We are not rather we’re effort-avoiders who are pressure-sensitive and very cautious about tiny commitment