The paint job

A new worker was told to paint the white lines down the middle of a road. On his first day he painted four miles. One the next day he painted two. And on the day after that, he painted under a mile. When his boss came to see how far he had got, he was asked why he had...

Stress versus burnout

I  was talking to a client the other day who coaches executives. We spoke about the difference between negative stress and burnout. This article (link to: mindtools.com) offers a good explanation and even has a burnout self-test so that you can check...

Do what great speakers do

How do great speakers capture their audience’s attention? According to Sims Wyeth they start with the unexpected, make the presentation about their listeners, get to the point and don’t waffle on, keep their presentation interactive and short and use clear...

The passive

I normally tell people to use the active voice if they can. But, of course, there are certain situations where you need the passive. But when is it used and how is it formed? The BBC World Service’s Learning English website gives us a short and sweet explanation...