Private Equity
Unless you've been asleep, hibernating, or out of the country for the last 12 months, you will be well aware that the Private Equity phenomenon has well and truly hit Australia. I can't remember when it actually hit my radar, but the KKR bid for Coles [Updated...
Mistsakes I’ve Made
Julian Lippi's PhD thesis has been a rich source of reflection for me over the last few days. Today, I was caused to think about mistakes I've made both in my professional career and in my personal relationships. I was reading Jenny's story where she said: ... every...
Structure and Methodology
I've just been reading about structure in coaching/mentoring relationships. The comment that jumped out at me was: You know, I think [structure]'s a bit of a security blanket for me because I am a person who likes a bit of structure. And for those people who do like a...
Routine and Tradition
What happens when our routine changes? How much are you a creature of routine? Personally, I love tradition. When our children were young, one of the books we read about parenting suggested that one of the main jobs of parenting was to "make memories" for...
Education at Election Time
It is election time here in Victoria with Steady Steve and Big Ted fighting out to see who will govern our state for the next four years. On just about our favourite topic of all time — Education — it's heartbreaking to see the two main political parties...
Wounds to the Soul
I wonder if you are carrying a wounded soul? We start out with such ideals — entrepreneurs in particular, if you class yourself in that category. But life has a way of presenting us with such huge dilemmas. I was moved to think about this after reading Ian...
Being Still
My apologies for the absence here for such a long time. It is over a month since I posted. How can that be? How time flies. I've been thinking about standing still. Well perhaps not standing still in the pejorative sense, perhaps more being still. Being still long...
Creating Shareholder Value
We are fascinated with this month's lead article in Harvard Business Review Ten Ways to Create Shareholder Value (subscription required for full article but you can get the abstract here or contact me for more details.) In one way, we really wonder how 'shareholder...
Easy Answers
Perhaps the most fundamental quest in human history has been to find ‘the path to a fulfilled life.’ Throughout time, men and women have sought to address this question at various levels of depth. For some it has been a shallow ‘tell me...
Fate vs Destiny
We were at the AHRI dinner the other night. A gala event by any standard and we were delighted to make the acquaintence of Colin and Patrina. During the course of the conversation we started discussing the difference between Fate and Destiny. Just semantics perhaps,...