Misty Raney Bilodeau is one of the stars of Homestead Rescue, a very snackable Discovery Channel makeover show. The twist for this version of the tried and trusted format is that the Raney family turn up at the homes of Americans who have moved off grid.  They have left the modern world and are living…

If you have to choose between having hard or soft power, which should you go for? In 1919 the British Empire was at its largest.  It covered a quarter of the land mass of the world, and ruled over a fifth of the population.  This was hard power, command and control, and it has mostly…

Ronnie O’Sullivan is unlike other legendary sports people in a number of ways. First of all, he’s got huge longevity: he is the only snooker player to have won the world championship as both the youngest, and now the oldest player. Secondly, at the same time as being on top of the modern game, in…

Nick Dunlap made golfing history in January 2024 when he won The American Express PGA Tour.  He is the first amateur to win a PGA Tour event in 33 years.  The prize money for the event is £1.5m.  However, because he is an amateur golfer (Dunlap is a university student), he doesn’t get to win any…

Happy 2024. As the old year turns into the new year there are often added pressures. Where it is acceptable to move a meeting from June to July or from October to November, moving a meeting from one year to another seems much more epic, and rude, so maybe the last weeks of the year…

First lesson of presenting: Say what you’re going to say.  Say it.  Say what you have just said. I learnt this in my first ever presentation training and it is true not only of presentations, but every time that you want to communicate. Got some feedback for a team member.  Say what you’re going to…

The final week of November saw a week of breakthrough presentations at EssenceMediacom and EssenceMediacomX from our partners, our teams and a wide set of inspirational people. Everyone was asked to come and deliver their view on how brands can breakthrough in the New Communications Economy (NCE). One clear theme stood out from many amazing…

“I always was a big believer in things on a global level,” Arnold Schwarzenegger. I was recently invited to be the seconder for the opposition for a motion at The Debating Group event in the House of Commons, this October.  The motion in question was: “A strong UK ad industry is key to returning the…

It was world menopause day on October 18th.  This is one of the newer world days of note.  When my mother went through menopause, she, and of course billions of other women throughout history, at least those that lived long enough, had to manage without a day of commemoration.  For something that is so material…

I started out in a full service creative agency in the 1980s as a TV buyer.  Straight from university, with no particular interest in advertising (I was just filling time until I started a law conversion course), I didn’t know about the esteemed industry trade press organ until I met a fellow grad intake who…

With a global talent shortage, and as we get “back to school” for the autumn, after the summer holidays, it is important to unpick, and then refresh, motivation at work.  Season 2 of The Bear is streaming now on Disney+.  Spoiler alert, the season leaves many unanswered questions (including will Carmy ever get out of…

“Chloe Kelly thumped home her winning penalty for England against Nigeria.  At 111km per hour, it was more powerful than any Premier League goal in 22-23” Mailonline It’s just not that long ago that the papers were debating whether women’s football was ever going to be as interesting as the men’s.  It’s in fact not…