As I write, I should be sitting in a cosy stone cottage in front of a wood-burning stove, having just returned from an invigorating walk with a lovely friend in the beautiful Black Mountains of Wales. Instead, I am at home in Amersham, still in bed, gazing out of the window at a uniformly grey sky that is interrupted only by a brutally pollarded tree. Welcome to my winter “holiday”. Don’t … [Read more...] about Escaping the tyranny of the “shoulds”
authentic self
Embrace your beautiful imperfection
I’ve had the honour of being part of three really special, authentic conversations today, and one theme that has recurred in these conversations has been that of self-acceptance. In my experience, the path to the authentic self can only be followed by accepting all of your other selves first - the ones you identify with, the ones you reject, the ones you project and the ones you disown. The … [Read more...] about Embrace your beautiful imperfection
Why I never celebrate Valentine’s Day
During my many years of dysfunctional independence, my single friends and I would often try to go out for a meal on February 14, forgetting it was Valentine’s Day. When we eventually found a restaurant that didn’t have a mandatory “romantic” set menu at vastly inflated prices, we would huff and puff about all the miserable-looking couples who had been forced to sit opposite each other … [Read more...] about Why I never celebrate Valentine’s Day
Is Adele the first star of the Age of Authenticity?
Last night, a 23-year-old girl from north London swept the board at the Grammys - winning all six of the categories in which she was nominated. She has achieved extraordinary success at a time when the music industry seems to be dying on its feet . In fact, she has sold three times as many records as the far more image-savvy Lady Gaga. She may not have 47 million followers on Twitter or … [Read more...] about Is Adele the first star of the Age of Authenticity?
My only New Year resolution
Welcome to 2012. My first and possibly only resolution is to post one pearl of wisdom (and I’m not bigging myself up here, this is stuff I’ve learned from people who know a lot more about the meaning of life than I do) for every day of this exceptional year. How do I know it will be exceptional? Because it’s Olympics year, it’s the Queen’s Golden Jubilee year, … [Read more...] about My only New Year resolution