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Newsletter 22 : 26 september 2009

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Welcome to our newsletter. You’ve received it because either you requested it (extra thanks!) or you met Jeremy while networking. We offer a change from other newsletters which do demand an awful lot of reading, and hope you will find it diverting. We aim to publish once every two weeks, but sometimes the flesh is weak even as the spirit is willing.

Emotional intelligence video of the week

In this excellent TED talk, Barry Schwartz makes a passionate call for “practical wisdom” as an antidote to a society gone mad with bureaucracy. He argues powerfully that rules often fail us, incentives often backfire, and practical, everyday wisdom will help rebuild our world.

Quotations of the week

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world, indeed it is the only thing that ever has.
attributed to Margaret Mead, anthropologist

Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.
Paul Boese, botanist

I don’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones
John Cage, composer

If things are going to stay the same, there will have to be some changes around here.
Giuseppe di Lampedusa, The Leopard

Emotionally intelligent way of developing your business

Creating a number of referral relationship is one of the best ways of growing a business. After all people buy form people and who better to persuade someone to be your client than their trusted friend? The Referral Institute shows how, and the Referrals For Life™ Conference 2009 – presented by international referral experts – is the best place to find out more. It offers a full day of professional training guaranteed to increase your referral results. Walk away with proven models to increase your results, spend time with people committed to increasing their results and have some fun! The conference is in Bristol on 27 October.

And, as an added bonus you get to meet Kay and Jeremy in the flesh (well, of course we will be dressed…).

Joke of the week

An atheist was walking through the woods.
‘What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals!’ he said to himself.
As he was walking alongside the river, he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. He turned to look and saw a seven foot grizzly bear charge towards him. He ran as fast as he could up the path. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the bear was closing in on him. He looked over his shoulder again, and the bear was even closer. He tripped and fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up but saw that the bear was right on top of him, reaching for him with his left paw and raising his right paw to strike him.
At that instant the atheist cried out ‘Oh my God!’
Time stopped.
The bear froze.
The forest was silent.
As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky.
‘You deny my existence for all these years, teach others I don’t exist and even credit creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?’ The atheist looked directly into the light: ‘It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask you to treat me as a Christian now, but perhaps you could make the bear a Christian?’
‘Very well’ said the voice.
The light went out. The sounds of the forest resumed. And the bear dropped his right paw, brought both paws together, bowed his head and spoke: ‘Lord bless this food, which I am about to receive from thy bounty through Christ our Lord, Amen.’

Emotional video of the week

Last time we looked at a feature film in which actors convincingly convey emotions of loss they don’t actually feel (in the sense that they aren’t the characters they portray). This time we look at another emotional situation – this time of threat in which the primitive flight/fight response is repeatedly activated. It’s interesting to speculate what triggers one or other response in the protagonist at any one point of the excerpt.

Contributions always gratefully received.

If you have been, thank you for reading.
Kay and Jeremy