When I sit down to write an article, it’s often to share my little adventures away from the rat race. But with mountains off the agenda right now, I thought I’d try something different by writing a post that’s a little more personal. I’m conscious readers don’t know a lot about me. I’m quite a private individual, so other than knowing I’m a former lawyer who’s found solace in the mountains, you’ve had to form your own impression about the…
‘The past is history. The future’s a mystery. But today is a gift – that’s why it’s called the present’. Master Oogway, Kung Fu Panda Goals My goal for 2020 was simple: complete 18 classic Lakeland fell walks, each one inspired by Alfred Wainwright’s excellent book, ‘Fellwalking With Wainwright’. By this time last year, I’d read the book from cover to cover, spread maps across the kitchen table, scribbled notes on scraps of paper and formulated a plan. Things didn’t…
Spend less Many people caught up in the daily grind dream of a more fulfilling life. The events of 2020 have offered a fresh perspective on what’s important. And very rarely does the rat race feature near the top of that list. If you have what society perceives to be a nice, comfortable office job, then you go to work to earn money to pay the bills and buy nice things. Money is a powerful incentive and keeps us plugging…
I thought staying motivated to work in lockdown would be a breeze. You see I’ve been lucky to work from home for the past three years. I have a decent home office setup. I know that Zoom isn’t just a retro ice-lolly. And I’ve had to make up my own coffee-machine gossip for some time. And that’s meant my lockdown routine has felt strangely, well, normal. In our pre-Covid world, people would often say to me ‘you must have so…
Despite a marathon unsubscribing session last year, I’m still on lots of mailing lists. On the whole, this is great. My inbox is filled with (mostly) interesting content, discount codes and ideas. I’ve kept things manageable by being honest about what I actually end up reading. If I find myself deleting e-mails before even opening them, that tells me it’s time to unsubscribe. But despite my e-mail subscription list being pretty lean, I’ve found it hard to keep on top…
I recently shared an article on Twitter from the BBC website: “Sick and tired of feeling sick and tired”. There were other headlines that day too: “Warning over youth career aspiration-reality disconnect”. “Young people ‘most vulnerable’ at work”. “My boss let me go over my condition”. The common themes? Stress. Anxiety. Burnout. All too common experiences for the 21st century worker. While it’s good that we’re starting to give mental health issues a voice, these articles show there’s still stigma…
Regular readers of this blog will know I’m not a fan of cities. As Toby, the steam tram from Thomas the Tank Engine nobly puts it, ‘I prefer the peace and quiet of the countryside’. When I do need to head towards the sights and sounds and shapes of the cities, I always try to turn it into an adventure. Shifting the focus of the trip from work and soulless offices to discovery and excitement. I’ve written before about ditching…
With today set to be another scorcher, what better time to kick start a new habit and inject some adventure into your commute? Who wants to be sitting on a bus or stuck in traffic in weather like this? Dust off your bike or a pair of trainers and get yourself to the office under your own steam. Funnily enough, one of the most common concerns I hear about a more active commute isn’t the traffic, or lack of fitness…
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The last two weeks have been busy. Business trips, stag dos, work, life admin. The antitheses of spending times outdoors. These things hit you all at once. It’s always the way. Leave the house early. Return late. Any time you are at home is spent catching up. Seeing the family. Sleeping. It’s been difficult to do anything outside, let alone find time to write about it. The Easter weekend arrived just in time to change my attitude. A few days…