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Simon Vumbaca's Articles

The Contemplationist

Simon Vumbaca’s highly regarded writings deliver actionable wisdom, drawing from his rich experiences with high-performing clients and his own personal journey.

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THE AI PARADOX: Output Isn’t Outcome - 1

THE AI PARADOX: Output Isn’t Outcome

AI makes answers cheap – outcomes are still to be earned Simon Vumbaca, March 2026 Synopsis: AI can give you a beautiful answer to almost anything. That’s the seduction: it speaks in our tone, organizes our thoughts, and offers a confident path forward—so convincingly that we confuse having an answer with having a result. The AI Paradox: Output Isn’t Outcomes is a contemplation on that widening gap. AI can multiply what we produce—messages, plans, content, options, decisions—without improving what we build, heal, learn, or become. Because outcomes still live in the real world: in effort, time, relationships, trade-offs, and consequences. And while AI can feel like a modern deus ex machina, it can also soften common sense—making polished output seem like proof, and certainty feel like truth. AI makes answers cheap—outcomes are still earned. This piece isn’t anti-AI. It’s pro-discernment. A reminder that AI can be a powerful guide, but it cannot replace the human responsibilities that make results real: judgment, context, skepticism—and the willingness to own what happens next. We are living in an era of convenience. We increasingly trade depth of attention for convenience, and called it evolution. Lately, all we call innovation and progress has per primary...

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If AI Is the Answer, What Was the Question? - 2

If AI Is the Answer, What Was the Question?

AI is everywhere—and we're told it’s indispensable. But when something is presented as a universal need, it demands deeper questioning. In this thought-provoking reflection, The Contemplationist asks four simple yet disruptive questions: What problem is AI solving? What need does it serve? Who had that need? And—who actually asked for it? Backed by data (over $3 trillion in AI investment since 2020), and contrasted with global spending on medicine and defense, the piece highlights a silent truth: AI may be a solution in search of a problem—engineered more by capital and theory than by human demand. From mass job displacement forecasts to vague promises of “efficiency,” the justification for AI feels more like marketing than meaning. This is not a rejection of technology—it’s a call to pause. To reframe progress. Because if AI is the answer, then we must ask: What exactly was the question?

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Harnessing Tech, Elevating Leadership - 3

Harnessing Tech, Elevating Leadership

On 8th November 2024, I took the (virtual) stage at the Digital Security Festival, an event known for exploring the boldest questions about technology, innovation, and the future of business. This year’s focus was on the transformative impact of cyber-presence in business, and I couldn’t resist tackling a powerful reality: the shift from information-driven to data-centric societies—and what that means for businesses, leadership, and even our sense of self. In my keynote, I explored how companies like Amazon, Apple, and Spotify have thrived by leveraging data-driven models, automating decisions, and shaping entire industries. But success powered by data isn’t without its challenges—especially for leaders, decision-makers, and even individual identity. The very tools that offer efficiency can also create dependency, burnout, and even identity crises, leaving us wondering: "When the sky has no limit, how far should we go?"

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Why Being Serious Is Seriously Overrated - 4

Why Being Serious Is Seriously Overrated

In a world where seriousness is worn like a badge of honor—whether at school, work, or in our personal lives—have we ever stopped to ask: is all this seriousness really making us happier or more successful? We’re constantly told to “get serious” to achieve great things, but what if being serious is, well, seriously overrated? This Contemplationist article takes a light-hearted yet insightful dive into the societal obsession with seriousness, questioning whether it’s truly necessary or just a habit we’ve picked up along the way. Through humour, sharp analysis, and some surprising examples, it challenges the idea that seriousness equals sustainable success. If you're ready to rethink how you approach life—and maybe enjoy it a little more—this article will show you how thoughtfulness, joy, and wisdom can coexist, minus the heavy frown.

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It’s Your Glass: Fill It Your Way - 5

It’s Your Glass: Fill It Your Way

Own Your Glass: Break Free from the Hustle, don’t break the glass! By owning our glass, taking responsibility for our actions, and preparing for the unexpected, we can break free from the superficial hustle and achieve true, balanced fulfilment. Embracing this deep, intentional approach transforms our lives from mere busyness to meaningful and enduring legacy.

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The Clear Cut: Cutting Through the Clutter to Clear Your Mind - 6

The Clear Cut: Cutting Through the Clutter to Clear Your Mind

I set out with a simple goal: clear up my desk. Little did I know that a mundane task would turn into a journey of self-discovery. From old papers and forgotten notes to relics of past projects, the act of shredding and reorganizing sparked a surprising sense of liberation. I found myself shredding not just physical clutter but mental clutter too. Along the way, I even ditched two extra computer screens, realizing that perhaps my multitasking setup didn’t need to resemble a NASA control room after all. The result? A profound sense of freedom, focus, and, yes, a better-organized desk. Whilst shredding, I began reflecting on how this process aligned with deeper philosophies like Taoism, embracing simplicity and balance. Clearing out forgotten tasks and outdated notes brought more than just neatness—it sparked a shift in mindset. In this article, I explore the surprising connection between a clean workspace and a clear mind, and how something as small as shredding papers can pave the way for a more focused, purpose-driven life. Ready to discover the magic of decluttering? Read on to find out how a tidy desk could be the key to clearer thinking and calmer days ahead.

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Change Is Inevitable—Why Aren’t You Ready? - 7

Change Is Inevitable—Why Aren’t You Ready?

This article explores the inevitability of change, emphasizing how humans and businesses often resist transformation despite its constant presence in nature. While everything around us evolves, there is an inner belief that we remain the same. This resistance to change has led to the many downfalls of industry giants and rulers alike who failed to adapt. Focus on superficial growth-related changes while neglecting the deeper transformations necessary to stay relevant in an ever-evolving world. From a Contemplationist perspective, resisting change is a contradiction to the natural order of growth. Whether in business or personal life, attempting to maintain the status quo leads to stagnation and missed opportunities for growth. True leadership involves embracing change as a force for innovation and progress. By understanding that change is both inevitable and essential, individuals and organizations can align with the natural flow of evolution, fostering the long-term success and resilience of their purpose driven visions. Change is inevitable—why aren’t you ready? The Contemplationist offers a guide to navigating this process.

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Winning Must Be Part of Your Cohesive Vision - 8

Winning Must Be Part of Your Cohesive Vision

In this article, Simon Vumbaca, the Contemplationist, highlights how winning must be a natural extension of our cohesive vision of life. Success doesn’t happen by chance but is a result of aligning actions with a clear long-term purpose. By avoiding unnecessary compromises and staying focused on our goals, we embed winning into our very identity. Simon Vumbaca emphasizes that incremental victories, just as much as major achievements, contribute to this vision. Through dedication, discipline, and maintaining a purpose-driven outlook, winning becomes not just an outcome but a continual process that reflects the cohesive vision guiding our life.

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Learning to win: every day is a lesson provided we want to excel - 9

Learning to win: every day is a lesson provided we want to excel

Whether we realize it or not, we are all learning every day. What sets successful people apart—those who continually surpass themselves—is their relentless desire to improve, even when they’re already winning. Imagine an athlete at the top of their game, constantly refining their technique, analysing every performance, and pushing harder every day. That’s the mindset: to embrace learning all day, every day, not just when things go wrong, but even when they go right. As we win, we learn and adapt—often unconsciously. But here’s the secret: if we learn consciously, we can supercharge our progress, gaining a deeper understanding of our victories and how they fit into our bigger goals. Take a moment to think of a time when you succeeded at something—maybe a big project at work or a personal challenge you overcame. Now, imagine if you had analysed that success, understood why it worked, and applied those insights to your next endeavour. That’s the power of conscious learning! Sometimes, we learn something seemingly insignificant, a small detail that might not seem important at first. But that tiny insight could be the key to your next big breakthrough. Remember Steve Jobs, who famously took a calligraphy course in college?...

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Back to Work: Time to Take Things to the Next Level - 10

Back to Work: Time to Take Things to the Next Level

In Europe, August is a time for vacations. Many Latin countries close their doors to normal business and head to the beach. These are times spent with family and friends, recharging batteries. This good habit has, in one form or another, extended to most countries in the Western world. For many, though, me included, breaking up or disrupting my everyday life is a consuming exercise. It takes time to break out of my routine and just as long to reinstate it. In essence, all the effort I put into “feeling like I’m on holiday” and then “going back to work” often outweighs the happiness I get from my daily routine the rest of the year. For some reason, there’s also this compulsory idea that, because we’re on holiday, we must go to even more restaurants and other places than we normally would, even if we already do so routinely throughout the year. But to me, the biggest disadvantage of this all-or-nothing holiday spirit is the time it takes to get back into things. As a Contemplationist, feeling good every day because everything is balanced makes me feel great. Not exceeding in either direction makes things sustainable and enjoyable, at least...

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If This Goes On, What Must Come Off? - 11

If This Goes On, What Must Come Off?

Recently, I reread Sir David Attenborough’s A Life on Our Planet. I highly recommend it. The perspective offered in each chapter is both enlightening and chilling. The anthropological evolution of society is mirrored beautifully within its pages, and the interaction between humans and the world around us is thoroughly documented by a witness who has dedicated his life to observing and recording what he saw. It prompted me to reassess the things that are, or attempt to be, under a refreshed light. The interaction between everything that happens, whether we are consciously aware of it or not, is one of the main points of reflection sparked by Sir David Attenborough’s account. When applied to the minutiae of our everyday lives, it should encourage reflection. With experience, longevity, and clarity, one is offered options and opportunities to do more and get involved in various projects. This is both exciting and enriching in many ways. It keeps the mind sharp, maintains momentum, and generally, it also keeps one happy! An amazing opportunity, particularly if it comes at the right time, can be invigorating and breathe new life into stagnation. That’s the good part. However, should we say yes to the new opportunity?...

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The Real Cost of Learning Your Lessons - 12

The Real Cost of Learning Your Lessons

“Errare humanum est.” To make mistakes is human. A very well-known statement that has been used in all sorts of instances to express that errors do happen. The reason errors occur can relate to many things, depending on each specific case. A world without errors would be a world ruled by a lack of initiative, as only when we venture into new things do we discover what not to do and, ultimately, what works! To learn from errors requires understanding their origin, and the tendency is to focus on whether the error is linked to our actions or not. In a study published in 2023, the University of Iowa concluded that “If human error is the reason for the outcome, the brain remains active for an additional two to three seconds, the researchers found. That means the brain realizes a mistake was made and essentially wants to learn from it.” In essence, we learn from a mistake in the hope of avoiding it in the future. This may sound obvious to many, but actually... Our brain, it seems, has a very expedited manner of dealing with and learning from mistakes. I don't know about you, but to me, that process...

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From Strategy to Tragedy (and How to Make It Back) - 13

From Strategy to Tragedy (and How to Make It Back)

Good planning is essential to success. Like many others, I am a great believer that preparing for all eventualities, every angle, and possible outcome is the way to have a fighting chance for a great strategy to succeed. It doesn’t matter in what walk of life or business the strategy is for. Failing to prepare is preparing to fail, and all that jazz. In recent years, however, the higher the stakes and the better the strategies developed, it has become clear to me that the risk of volatility resides with the implementation of the strategy defined. That is the human component. As a Contemplationist, I had to investigate further. In a sense, strategies exist in a vacuum of abstract thoughts, and the reality for the highest performers, at any level, is that they are humans, not operating in a vacuum. Probably, that is part of the appeal that AI and other systems models have on our collective imagination. But we, the human component of strategy, for as well-trained and experienced as we believe ourselves to be, are still the most likely cause of the different outcomes of a strategy. What really separates the top 3 athletes of any sport is...

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So, What Is Really Going On Is… - 14

So, What Is Really Going On Is…

We all want to do well. We also want others to do well. When both aspirations' paths go in the same direction, then it is brilliant, and all seems perfect. Sometimes, though, paths that seemed to go in the same direction cross each other in a non-positive manner. One may be tempted to accept some degree of compromise to progress, but very often, the party that accepts compromise is the one that loses most of the original path's intent. But we all want to do well, and we also want others to do well, so we look for cues to help. We listen to the words said to us, and we want to believe them. This is part of who we are as humans, and behaviour is, to a certain extent, defined by who we are. All the above may sound or look abstract, but it is not. In business and in life, we tend to label and identify the persons or organizations we are interacting with, compartmentalizing them to what we identify them as. That is how we will refer to them and unless something calls us into questioning it, we will stick to it. This is why some...

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Vote for Me (Blah Blah Blah): A Song on the Electorate-Elected Dance - 15

Vote for Me (Blah Blah Blah): A Song on the Electorate-Elected Dance

As you all know, it is not the role of the Contemplationist to comment on political ideology. It is really not something for us. As a Contemplationist, though, reflecting on the impact the last few weeks will have on the short-term future is something fascinating. The current 12 to 17-year-olds will inherit the world in the not-too-distant future, and it is fascinating to see how they are reacting to the short-term changes. In the midst of it all is the idea and process associated with any election, regardless of political opinions. The “format” presented by the would-be elected to the electorate has been around forever, and while the medium has evolved with the advancement of technology and how we consume it, the fundamental path has remained the same. And so it seems with the perception of the process. The song "Vote for Me (Blah Blah Blah)" offers a factual and precise view of this relationship between the electorate and the would-be elected that we found as relevant as ever. So, for once, I let the song do the talking. Listen to 'Vote for Me (Blah Blah Blah)' by Att1la (the One) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-IcWNW1Qh8

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I Have No Idea Why I Did It, but It Was the Right Choice! - 16

I Have No Idea Why I Did It, but It Was the Right Choice!

Are Your Choices Really Yours? The Subconscious Influences on Our Decisions Pricing a service or a good is an arduous job. You do not want to charge too much, but you also do not want to undervalue your offering. I read in a book on value services that the best way to achieve the best price for your services is to offer a fee based on perceived value delivered. Perceived value should be the basis of the fee to be charged. The anticipated objection to that approach is to ensure the perceived value is as high as possible. The author proposed a three-tier approach: submit three prices linked to performance as options, and the likelihood that option 2 (the middle-priced one) would be chosen was high. No one wants to be perceived as cheap and undervaluing the services received, and certainly, no one likes to pay the highest price. Bottom line: it was all about choice. Perceived choice. The same applies in sports: you either support the blue or the red team. The team you support must invest time and effort (and money) to either reach glory or maintain the status quo. That is a choice between two very different...

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Adversity as Constructive Force - 17

Adversity as Constructive Force

As mostly all of us do, I invested my time in a lot of things, possibilities, opportunities, options of deals with great outcome, companies, projects reviews, technicalities and so on. It all seemed a winning horse at the time and off course worth my time. A lot of the time invested did not turn into anything at all and very often the feeling was of being immensely let down by the matter, the people, the reality of things that should have been highlighted from the start and so on.  Some started behaving and interacting with you in a certain manner, just to change behaviour as soon as things start progressing and start wanting more or different outcomes, pushing to self-serving interest over the project. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong in my books in wanting to be ambitious! For the few deals that happen and materialise, the joys is immense and it makes you feel a bit, I imagine, like a golfer who has just hit the perfect shot! The problem is to understand if the perfect shot is it out of around of 120 shots, or if it is it out of round of 72 shots, with...

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Money Is Not an Object… Anymore - 18

Money Is Not an Object… Anymore

In business and in life, we like to feel informed. I must confess that since 2008 the degree of business and financial information available and gathered has been growing exponentially. We now have on-the-spot updates and financial predictions that are delivered with such convincing aplomb that we believe they must be accurate and based on extensive analysis and complicated algorithms. The numbers displayed seem head-turning. Billions are referred to as pennies used to be referred to in the old days. As you know if you have read any of my earlier writings, I am not into politics, and I am not equipped to see it as a good or bad thing. It is what it is. One thing that has evolved, though, is the relationship we seem to have with money. That got me thinking: has money become such a fundamental foundation stone to all we do, that its importance in our needs has changed? Is Maslow's hierarchy diagram of needs accurate, or must we readjust it and create a special space for money, and only money? And if so, where to position it? Money, we are taught, was the object used to achieve and acquire things, a tool that...

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Fluid Strategy - 19

Fluid Strategy

I am often asked: what is Strategy? I used to use long and detailed explanations that covered all sorts of possible objections the listener had never even thought of, taking the more ‘detailed’ route of strategy of my own in anticipating their reactions. However, in recent years, the more experiences I had the more I became aware of the beauty of simplicity and that answer became more clear: Strategy is identifying what needs doing now to affect/influence the future to produce an objective. Like a wave, it must be fluid, adaptable and go with the flow. We can aim for an outcome, we can hope for an outcome, but ultimately like the wave there are factors out of our control that may affect the outcome. A good strategy allows you to be prepared for change independent of the models and structures. The effect of recessions and the pandemic had such a profound impact on the course of many strategies that had been defined prior to these events. During the pandemic it took a while for business owners to react as the unknown was so destabilising that it created insecurity that transcended business affairs and impacted the personal leading to many...

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Ask Yourself These Three Powerful Questions – And Do Nothing - 20

Ask Yourself These Three Powerful Questions – And Do Nothing

I was recently looking for some information to help a client that had grown so fast since first trading to see where things were being delayed in the implementation of his strategy. To any neutral observer it was clear: daily tasks micro-management was taking over the execution of the agreed strategy. The client was frustrated for not being able to implement the strategy they knew would make them do the jump of quality they had been after for some time and we had agreed as the right one for them. Seeing as I was looking at time management books that had not been used for a while, my wife, as wise as ever, reminded me of the Covey Quadrant Model exercise as a go-to. Strong of the quadrant exercise in my digital hands, I recommended to my client, as a simple task for the day to keep doing what they had been doing, but to simply add crosses in each box of what they have been doing that day. At the end the look of the table had a vast majority of crosses on the third quadrant. Not a complete surprise for the attentive observer. Sometimes seeing things this simply...

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Rational or Instinctive Decisions: Which Works Better? - 21

Rational or Instinctive Decisions: Which Works Better?

The time to make a decision is the most nerve-wracking moment for any decision maker. The list of the “what ifs” is never-ending. Assuming the information we have is accurate, have we really covered all the angles that matter? The list goes on. The reality is that one is rarely in possession of 100% of the required information and, like many things in life, decisions are also based on gut feeling, past experiences, expectations, understanding of facts, people and so much more. Data analysis, for as accurate as it may be, reflects the past. It can help the decision making process and manage some expectations but relying only on this is the equivalent of driving a car with eyes closed; no matter well you know the rules of the road something crucial would be missing… So, how do we know when it’s the right time to make a decision and what the right decision is? Well, once you have covered all rational aspects of the matter at hand, done all your calculations to make Mr Spock proud of your work, what do you do if you still have that strange feeling in your stomach that tells you that maybe this...

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Return on Time Invested - 22

Return on Time Invested

According to western traditions, we are at the start of a new year. This is a time when all resolutions are forged in purposes and actions. Most for a short while. We focus on what is ahead. Have we learned from the recent past though? For me 2023 has been a fantastic year by many accounts. Wanting to be honest with myself, though, there is something I should have done better. I invested a lot of my time in projects that excited me without real concern of return om the time invested. I guess through the prism of the happy lenses, with a pinch of perennial optimism, all time shared was to be well invested. Looking back now, even with an accurate valuation metric system of our projects, I am not convinced how one could have certainty that one’s focus is on the projects with the highest chance of return and thus focusing on a proportionate time invested. Once we start something that we believe in, it is my conviction that it is natural to focus on it and prioritise accordingly. How to know if our time is properly and proportionally invested, unless it is retroactively that is? I do...

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The importance of accurate designation: Process vs Purpose - 23

The importance of accurate designation: Process vs Purpose

Recently I have been blessed by the opportunity to be a speaker at several tech conferences and even to be interviewed by tech futurist experts. They all had incredibly solid vision, almost to a certainty rarely seen before, of the evolution of technologies and how, with the push of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) all has become easier and better. So much so that in one instance it was said by the experts that the human element was actually the weakest link in the progress of technology. I am not an expert in technology. I never professed to be one in fact. Simply put, I was born with a dose of intellectual curiosity in the last non internet growing up generation and was fascinated from a young age by programming software on what now are mega obsolete machines kindly gifted then to our school by IBM. Then computers and programs were called microprocessors.  For as far back as I can recall the fascination with these mystic microprocessors machines was always there for me and certainly movies such as “war games” made my fascination even bigger from a young age. The secret of the equation was to programme what would happen if something...

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It Is Better To Ask For Forgiveness Than Permission – why the thirsty should let the mudded water settle before drinking it. - 24

It Is Better To Ask For Forgiveness Than Permission – why the thirsty should let the mudded water settle before drinking it.

There was a not-so-distant time where information was the difference between success and mega success. These days we are flooded with information. We have specialist access to even more specialised information that is so specific that it makes readers feels experts. This avalanche of information also happens at the speed of light – or the speed of your internet connection. This makes the volume of what needs to be broadcasted even more frenetic. Masses of content is created to cover information, to the point of absurdity at times. . In fact, we have so much information available that the line between factual account and prediction has blurred so much. All is to be broadcasted and reacted instantly. This has the perverse effect of making the news and markets symbiosis almost a dance to a cacophonic tune. We aim to be the first ones to allegedly know, the first ones to react and be ready. We are so focused on being “ahead of the curve” that we take information at face value, without even taking the time to check its accuracy. If it is there, it must be true. And if it is not, not our problem, we acted fast and...

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When Self Doubt Knock - Don’t Open the Door" - 25

When Self Doubt Knock – Don’t Open the Door”

Today I was in Town and managed to catch up with a friend. This was an impromptu meeting. By many accounts my friend is a very successful businessman in his own right with a massive set of skills and an even longer list of achievements. He brilliantly sold his business not long ago and after a super summer of holidays doing all he wanted to do for the last many years, when he joined me there was something different about him. It took me a while to react, and I understood what was missing: his smile was gone! How is that even possible? Turns out he had been approached by a head-hunter for a high-level position in someone else’s business. After going through the selection diligence process, he was not the chosen one. He was the runner up. This played straight in all his fears. One can only imagine the sort of questions and self-doubt that must have been going through his mind. He was now running to another interview for another unsolicited job, as if to prove something to himself! Yet, just before this unsolicited job opportunity was on his table, he was content and enjoying life to its...

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If you stay the same, how can you expect things to change? - 26

If you stay the same, how can you expect things to change?

One of the beauties of growing old is that things are put into perspective. There is a tendency to look back at what was done, particularly when selective memory is applied and we tend to remember the good stuff and forget the bad, unless it was really painful. Talking to my friend of many years, Olympic champion Kriss Akabusi, reminded me of an important fact: every day you are building your future through all your actions. As small as these actions may be, they will shape your future. Looking back can be helpful, but being stuck in the past is limiting. In his case, he will forever be remembered as the gold medallist and silver medallist super energetic Olympic champion. However, that does not fully capture who he is or who he became after his Olympic career ended. If anything, it marked a new beginning for him. I invite you to read his fascinating life story and incredible positive energy and determination to look forward; it's truly inspiring! To me, the essence of the matter is that one needs to be excited and driven by the future rather than dwelling on the past. If one focuses on what has been...

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Shall we burry our head in the Sand and pretend all is well - 27

Shall we burry our head in the Sand and pretend all is well

Waking up every morning to news readers telling us how the basic services the state is supposed to deliver are not working and are losing money. Then you hear about how corporations are driving production prices down via their competitive processes, leaving the producers exposes and with losses, particularly if anything is amended in the initial terms. In the Food distribution, Superstores say they are doing it to protect consumers even if the discounts are never passed on until perishable goods are expiring and need to get rid of. These are goods that should have not been produced in the first place and are so the Superstore can access mega discounts on scalable productions. The energy production is linked to natural resources free to all. However, we managed to create such a complex infrastructure around it that we cannot even freely collect our own solar or wind energy: we must connect to the grid and pay a rent, just in case, we are told, whilst the energy companies post record profits the elderly is restricted from access to energy as they can no longer afford it. And with all of it Governments taxes go up when social services, policing quality,...

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The Right Person at the Right Time - in the Right Place. Perfect Storm or absolute luck? And why does it even matter? - 28

The Right Person at the Right Time – in the Right Place. Perfect Storm or absolute luck? And why does it even matter?

People often refers to the right person at the right time to do the right thing. This indicates the distant wish that things can be perfect for someone and their organisation. It is inevitably followed by: how lucky was that? Far from it, luck should not be part of it. The combinations are simple: what about the wrong person at the right time and right place? What about the right person but at the right time and the right place; what about the wrong person at the wrong time but the right place. You get the idea. What defines the right time and place is often the desired outcome rather than the right one anyway. The desired outcome properly planned will assist overcoming the highest perception of luck. Take sports for instance, as an illustration. A scorer has to be in position to score. Most of the work will be to be in a scoring position. All team’s members need to play their part, so you are not offside. Then, if it is football for instance, when the ball arrives, the scoring probability increases dramatically if you are in the box. Does not matter if the player is good or...

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The Unlimited Power of Silence and Why It Matters - 29

The Unlimited Power of Silence and Why It Matters

Have you ever been in a meeting where the person you are talking to remains silent and you inexplicably feel logorrhoeic? Have you ever been in a meeting where someone was talking so much that you stopped listening?  Let’s be honest – this has happened to most of us. Silence can be unsettling at best. In fact, increasingly we seem to avoid silence as it something may happen. We avoid silence so much that we even use headphones to meditate: go figure!  The sense of uneasy caused by silence is often understood as a threat to: Asserting our authority and position in the tribe  Comforting us and others  Certainty  Making our point of view heard So why is it that in ancient times silence was regarded as a virtue and a tool of the wise? Yet, things happened even then. What could possibly have changed today to make silence a concern? I would even question if most of the things that are said are not relevant or important and are a simple distraction and noise. Imagine distilling conversations to the point. So much more time would be saved in business, time that could be put to good use elsewhere.  When...

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Risks: How Far Should You Go? - 30

Risks: How Far Should You Go?

Making decisions is the easiest thing. Making the right decision however less so! Decisions need to evaluate the risk they entail. Risk is an unpredictable that has a tendency to occur at the worst moment. Why is that ? How far shall one push it before the risk inevitably turns into a reality?  When something happened that was not foreseen, things can go into disarray. A market crash, a regulation changing or a competitor with the new disruptive product, all can happen in a heartbeat.  The truth though is that the post-mortem of a situation often illustrates that all the signs of a risk happening had been displayed in advance of the matter occurring. However, these signs have been dismissed often instinctively.  Risk assessment is an integral part of any reasoning of strategy definition. It always vary according to circumstances. In our experience, if you ask yourself some basic questions, you should walk into decisions and risk with the eyes open. If you are lucky, it may prevent the risk from occurring altogether, and have you ready if it does.  These simple questions below dictate often complex analysis and answers and one rarely finds exhaustive responses. These questions should be...

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