I had a great evening yesterday, in the company of twenty or so colleagues (is that the right word - see previous article!) from the Institute of Business Consulting of which I am a member because of my coaching and consultancy business. The occasion was the annual Chairman's Networking Dinner impressively hosted at Casani's French Bistro in Bath by our illustrious regional chairman, David Rigby, who has a real gift for these things. The enjoyable meal was interspersed by ten-minute speakers and there was the opportunity for much idle or deep and meaningful conversation.
I found myself talking to two people who, like me, have a significant background in Information Technology. The conversation with the person on my left was all about the problems of using computers today. This ranged from the way in which computer media or files from a decade or so ago cannot be read by today's computers, to how we are losing historical records because inks used for printing documents (and photographs) do not last well. I still intend to print out a lot of my digital photos to add to my traditional album - that may be necessary if my p.c. is wiped out by EMP or plagued by future incompatibility; but what is the point if the prints will not last? My conversationalist is still using a 35mm camera with traditional film.
After the main course I chatted to the person opposite me. Her work as a consultant focuses on helping teams of people in remote places to communicate with one another. She encourages the embracing of modern technology, taking people beyond mere web-conferencing to the on-line virtual world of Second Life. She sees such use of technology as essential in today's environmental crisis. She is the first person to have offered to help me sort out the wardrobe for my avatar. I have not accepted yet!
I am struck by the contrast between these two conversations.
I am very aware that as a personal and business coach I value working with people face to face: yet I use e-mail to arrange the appointments, and I am typing this on a computer now. It alarms me when I visit offices and see people glued unergonomically to their computer screens even to the exclusion of a lunch break.
It seems to me that in today's society we risk being turned into machines by the machines, that is to say we become dehumanised. What it means to be fully human is a bigger topic than I allow for in this one article however, as I attempt to think through the extent to which I should use automated e-mail newsletters (etc.) to promote my business, I feel that I first need to envision the way in which a healthy society makes use of technology, and be faithful to my vision. A challenge in Finding True North!
"Technology is a great servant, but a poor master." In times of technological change, and when "the market" wants us to adopt new technology for its profit, what values do we need to hold on to use technology to grow in our humanity rather than to be dehumanised?
I suspect that people have been asking similar questions since before the Atom Bomb, and maybe not enough during the Industrial Revolution. Paul Vallely impresses me with his writing, and I note his article in the Church Times of 6th November 2009. He comments on the row over the sacking of government scientific adviser David Nutt and concludes that the problem is not our contempt for science, but that scientists condescendingly do not (always) see that "science must be subjected to social values not be a substitute for them."
At a recent work-related gathering a friend(?) of mine made a comment along the lines that he knows who are his friends because they are the people with whom he socialises. By implication, people he works with are unlikely to be friends.
This set me thinking (yes, maybe I do too much of that!). Perhaps partly because of my ersthile by local role as a vicar, most of the people that I know, and may think of a friends, I have got to know through "work," or perhaps through a local club related to one of my hobbies, or some course of study. If I were to define my friends as only those I (just) socialise with (and what does that mean?) it would be a small bunch indeed.
I find myself wondering how technological and other changes have affected what it means to be a friend. A century or so ago, before the easy transport that we take for granted today, most people's friendship group would have been those in their local neighbourhood, and they would have got to know one another through living near to one another and attending the local school together. At the other extreme, today, a friend is someone I am unwilling to refuse access to my Facebook profile.
Changes in technology, transport, and access to university education, all make it easier to build geographically wider communities - of friends or at least acquaintances. The technology ranges from the telephone to e-mail to Second Life.
I could define friends as people who enjoy one another's company, without seeking gain from that. I could recognise friends as those who are there for me when I am in need, and I for them (yes, I recongise the Biblical alusions). So how important to friendship is physical presence (touch, or literally a shoulder to cry on)? Is the nature of friendship changing? If so, is that for better or for worse?
At the Corsham Chamber of Commerce yesterday we listened to a fascinating speaker - Sue Wilkin from the local Trading Standards office. She deals with relationships between businesses and their consumers.
I thought I knew a fair bit about this, but some new regulations were brought in last year. I learned that:
It is now an offence for businesses to engage regularly in unfair commercial practices, such as refusing to replace faulty goods. Trading standards officers can now make use of the civil courts to deal with such businesses.
Traders who give quotes in the consumer's home for work to be done, such as replacing damaged roofing, have to offer a seven day cooling off period during which the consumer can change their mind.
Goods sold have to be sufficiently durable, so retailers do have an obligation to compensate consumers whose microwave ovens fail just after the guarantee period has ended! They cannot say, "You did not buy an extended warranty: go away!" (This is not new, this is from the Sale of Goods Act.)
E&OE. While I believe this information to be correct in English law, I take no responsibility for its accuracy or any consequencies if you rely upon it. Check it with authoritative sources such as aTrading Standards Office, Consumer Direct, or a lawyer.
An interesting article in The Week today (3rd October 2009) comments on how the original data on global surface temperatures, which has underpinned the climate change hypothesis, has vanished. Apparently the original data collected by Wigley and Jones, and drawn on by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, has been lost although "adjusted" figures remain.
The question is: if there is no scientific data to underpin beliefs about climate change, then is the movement really a religion?
While enjoying lunch in the garden recently, before the wave of wet weather set in again in Wiltshire, I was distracted by a large wasp on a nearby plant. This turned out to be a hornet. Further investigation revealed hornets coming and going from a nest in our neighbour's roof space.
I'm not sure whether to be pleased that we have rare insects in our garden (to complement an impressive variety of butterfly species this year), or look forward to our neighbour having the nest destroyed before the wasps become overly pervasive later in the year.
At the weekend I found myself talking to someone out walking her dog. She was recovering from Swine Flu and lives not far from us.
She'd been diagnosed as having Swine Flu because of aching greater than that she'd experienced with 'flu before, and having started a course of Tamiflu recovered well and quickly.
Travelled to London on the train yesterday afternoon for a trustees meeting of Accts MMI. The train manager happily announced that we were running ahead of schedule until we were near Reading. Then the train stopped for quarter of an hour while the manager and driver inspected the train and the police arrived. It turned out that children had placed timber and concrete across the rails - and been seen running away so probably got caught by the police.
The train ploughed through this material without most people noticing, and even the braking seemed fairly normal. I feel for the driver, though, as he must have seen this at the last moment and for a few moments had time to wonder whether the train was about to derail and he was about to die.
There are some interesting discussions going on about the development of faith in Europe. Grace Davie has pioneered research in this area and written books on the subject. She comments on the current discussion hosted by the Guardian.
Grace gives an overview there, but her comment that the church has an important role to play, but does not have control, seems central to me.
I write this because I have been pointed to a video on YouTube which draws attention to the changing demographics in Europe. It contends that Europe will be Muslim in a few years because of changes in birth rates. Clearly Europe, and Britain, are becoming increasingly multi-racial. According to the videobirth rates among "native Europeans" have dropped below a critical level which guarantees their extinction as a majority culture. It then predicts that Europe will become predominantly Muslim, as distinct from Christian and from the current trend towards secularism. This prediction seems fraught with hazardous assumptions, such as: immigrant communities will continue to have "higher birthrates," and that they will want to overthrow the culture that they are surrounded by rather than value it or develop it.
The video finishes with a "call to action" for Christians, but it seems intended to scare and to evoke a racist response in order to protect ("Christian") "civilisation as we know it." For this reason I do not find the seven minute video easy to watch, but here's the link to it.
What do I think, from a Christian viewpoint?
Firstly, it's no good being protectionist about our Christian culture, we need to do better. It has a lot of holes in it, as is shown at present by the scandal over the expenses of some Members of Parliament. The good news is that the public does care about such abuses, and has a sense of ideal morality to which it aspires.
Secondly, it is clear that our culture is changing and not static, we need to have an idea of the way that we would like our culture to develop, and live in a way that will bring it about. We need to be intentional about our own way of life and the development of society, not just "let it happen." As Gandhi put it, "Be the change that you want to see in the world."
Thirdly, the Bible does not set out a vision for a homogeneous Christian culture. On the contrary, it describes Christianity being lived out in different ways as it continues to spread through different cultures. It took courage and wisdom on the part of early church leaders to allow this. Healthy church growth has worked for its culture, and needs to be culturally and racially diverse.
So, finally, let's build a Godly society in which the teachings of Jesus are alive, expect it to be culturally (and racially) diverse and to benefit from those varied expressions, and don't expect to control the way it happens!
I think Barack Obama deserves a reputation as an excellent wordsmith, helped as I understand it by at least one British speechwriter!
I was impressed by his inaugural speech, and now I'm impressed by the speech he gave at Cairo University yesterday. Although criticised by some Americans for not holding to account Muslims for the actions of extremists among them, he does tackle extremism and I am impressed by the way that he seeks to travel a conciliatory middle path on Israel and Palestine and on women's rights.
I enjoy chocolate Easter eggs, but I don't expect to be fascinated or educated by them. So thank you for the Divine Fairtrade egg that is made from cocoa beans from Ghana, and includes some pictures of Adinkra symbols which express the values of the Akan people of Ghana.
These symbols are for:
Wisdom, creativityananse ntontan Democracy and shared destinyfuntunfunefu-denkyemfunefu Wisdom & knowledgemate masie Humility & inner strengthdwennimmen Learning from the pastsankofa Family and solidarityfi-hankra Adaptabilitydenkyem Charisma and leadershipadinkrahene Endurance, perseveranceaya
It's an impressive list: if I wanted to invent healthy values for a society I don't think I could do much better.
I was at a SIMA training event yesterday, which finished with a look Jill Bolte Taylor's story on TED.com. You have to watch this! I hadn't come across TED.com before: it's a site full of significant video presentations. So follow the link to take a look, or watch the YouTube version below.
Jill is a scientist who studies the brain. She had a stroke which disabled the left side of her brain, and thus part of the right side of her body and also her ability to use language, and from which she recovered over eight years. She describes what happens - not seeing it just as a disability but an awesome discovery of the capability of the right side of her brain. In her mind this is a powerful spiritual experience, as she explains the way in which this increased her sense of perception and connectivity to the power of the universe, as against her usual left hemisphere domination with her individuality and sense of time.
It's good to see that my friends at SIMA have launched a new programme to help people in their late teens and early twenties with career choices (including 'A' levels and cv writing) by helping them to recognise their unique abilities.
A few years ago I remember reading an article which said that the countries with the best overall quality of health were those with the least income gap between the richest and the poorest.
Will Hutton this week writes in The Observer about a new book called The Spirit Level. This has a similar theme, that more unequal societies are more dysfunctional across the board. Our instinct is to be collaborative, but where there are big income gaps the rich no longer fear the censure of the poor, and the poor no longer feel able to bridge the wealth gap through their own efforts. This results in a ruder and more violent society.
The comments on the web under Will's article do not dispute the statistics, but some comment that statistics cannot show causation. So these things may be true, but does one cause the other, or are they both caused by something else?
It's a good question, but it seems to me obvious that where there are big differences of wealth it indicates that the rich care less about the poor and so the outcomes he cites are likely.
It seems to have been snowing all week, which we don't remember happening for the last eight years, and according to the weather forecasters this is the biggest snowfall we have had for eighteen years. It's fun to make snowmen, but not so much fun if you're car is stuck in a snow drift. Ours are just stuck in a car park, so it's good that we can work from home.
Here's some snowmen from our back garden and our creative local florist! Click on the photos to see them in full.
Surprised this morning to see snow falling here in Corsham. It feels cold in the house too. Although there is just a thin covering here, England is experiencing "the heaviest snow for 18 years" - that's since 1991.
Maybe this is the last challenge open to man on the surface of the planet - to row round the world. Olly Hicks has just started rowing round Antarctica, from Tasmania, and expects it to take several years. A few people have attempted this before but not succeeded. This builds on his solo rowing across the Atlantic Ocean.
A friend of mine who has recently become an expert on reindeer tells me that male reindeer shed their antlers in the autumn, and female reindeer shed their antlers in the spring. Pictures of Santa Claus and his reindeer that I have seen always show them with antlers, so they must be female.
Why does he prefer female reindeer? Does his most famous reindeer, Rudolf, know that she is female?
As we move into the start of a New Year when much seems unknown and uncertain, I find myself reminded of words used by King George VI on Christmas Day 1939.
In the meantime I feel that we may all find a message of encouragement in the lines which, in my closing words, I would like to say to you:I said to the man who stood at the Gate of the Year, "Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown." And he replied, "Go out into the darkness, and put your hand into the Hand of God. That shall be to you better than light, and safer than a known way."
May that Almighty Hand guide and uphold us all.
The quote he used, by Bristol author Minnie Louise Haskins, has often been requoted since - even though the rest of her poem seems difficult to find - probably because it is so evocative. I find that it resonates within me as I look out into our present circumstances.
The context of the speech was the King seeking to encourage his people shortly after Britain and France had declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939. Since I can imagine that this must have been one of the scarier moments in British history, perhaps we should appropriate its imagery and encouragement now.
It's taken me a while to get into switching off over the Christmas and New Year period, but I got there in the end and it's been good to relax with family and friends.
Amusing vignettes include my young niece bringing food for Santa's reindeer that was composed of oats and glitter (I hope they have robust digestion); the local Crib Service which involved lots of children one of which fainted; a "grow-your-own toupee" that hardly grew; discovering Winter Pimms in several local pubs; and a quote seen on a narrow boat on the Kennet and Avon Canal, near Bradford on Avon on New Year's Eve:
"Only dead fish go with the flow!"
I'd also like to thank all those who would not have sent me Christmas Cards but nevertheless e-mailed me to say that they were giving the money to charity instead.
A while ago I wrote about leg room on Monarch Airlines flights. They wrote back to me on 8th December, in reply to my letter of 3rd September. They had acknowledged my letter, but it has taken them longer than they said they hoped (eight weeks I think they said) to reply to my letter.
I had commented that the leg room available seemed inadequate, and there seemed to be no system in place to ensure that the taller people who needed it had preferential access to the limited number of seats with more leg room. In their reply they don't seem to acknowledge the need, just to say they are "in line with the majority of UK carriers" and complying to "CAA and manufacturer's guidelines" and CAA "rigid safety criteria." What safety? I contend that a significant proportion of the population would find it physically impossible to adopt the advocated "brace position" in an emergency in the amount of space provided.
It saddens me when a company's idea of creativity and customer service is limited to not contravening rules and regulations and being in line with the "majority of" others who are presumably similarly unimaginative.
I'm impressed by the the Ecclesiastical Insurance Group. I recommend them for good insurance (cars, household, etc.).
I sent in a letter and customer survey form after my car was repaired after a recent accident. The manager in charge of motor claims telephoned me yesterday to talk it through and to discuss his ideas for improving their service.
I had already deduced that they are serious about listening to their customers, as their survey form is very impressive, including general but valuable questions about how customers perceive them that key into their firm's values.
This contrasts with the lack of interest shown by Monarch Airlines (is this Britain's worst airline?) who have still not replied as they promised to my letter, and a coaching supplier that I am linking with who also does not seem to like criticism.
I wonder whether I should ask firms whether they are interested in improving performance, and interested in what their clients have to say, before I write in full?
By way of completeness, Barclays Bank eventually worked out that the messages sent by their order line were not being received by their fulfilment office, apologised profusely, and then deluged me with the envelopes I had ordered. I think that is a good outcome. Hopefully they will modify there system so it detects such errors, and introduce a more accessible escalation process!
I just want to record this historic day: the election of the first black President of the United States of America.
Recently in the U.K. we celebrated the bicentenary of the the Act of Parliament to abolish the slave trade in the U.K., and the work of William Wilberforce. Americans are drawing parallels today with the work of Martin Luther King a few decades ago, and of course there are the events of the American Civil War in between. African Americans are rightly excited by this development, which they have waited for for a long time, and it will be interesting to see how the river of racial equality continues to flow over the next few years.
My latest upset is Barclays Bank. Some years ago they closed down lots of branches in "small towns" including the one I live in. (Other banks did the same.) The main irritation of this to many people is the difficulty of paying in cheques. Once upon a time, when we lived a long way from a bank, Barclays gave us prepaid envelopes to do this. After a while they refused to do that anymore. Anyway, to lessen the blow to rural communities, they agreed to allow cheques to be paid in at Post Offices. This is useful, supports local Post Offices too (that's nice, because I'm not sure that the government want to support this useful social service) and - unsurprisingly - you have to obtain special envelopes to do this.
What happens if you keep ordering them and they do not arrive? Then you can't use the service anymore.
The system is that you phone a free number and get put through to a helpful person in Mumbai (I have nothing against that in principle.) He asks you for your address which he writes down and then faxes to an office in Britain. The office in Britain then posts the envelopes to my home. This seems a complicated system. Why not just use an online portal that automatically prints out the shipping documents? Why not use e-mail rather than fax?
When I phoned the same number and asked what the procedure was if the system worked, the reply was, "I can only send a fax." So he sent another fax, and the envelopes did not arrive again. Why should they? (Einstein quote!).
When I spoke to UK customer services on the phone, they said they could not help me as they had no "procedure" to do so. Helpfully the lady took ownership of the problem and phoned the same number to ask for some envelopes for me. She had to wait about quarter of an hour in the queuing system.
I'm sure you will await the next instalment with excitement!
I still have not heard from Monarch Airlines, after I wrote to them.
On a brighter note, when I made the effort to chat to my local councillors about some things that were winding me up, I started to understand their problems more, and feel that they are now more in touch with the needs of those they seek to serve. I am impressed by the dedication of people who serve as local councillors, often doing it pretty much full time without a salary.
Our return flight from Egypt to London Gatwick was with Monarch Airlines. It was delayed by six hours, but nobody at the Monarch check apologised. I infer that this is commonplace.
I'm also getting fed up with the way that on such charter flights there is insufficient leg room for people of around my height (6 ft 3 / 190 cm). Once upon a time preference seemed to be given to tall people to get the seats with more room at fire exits. Now airlines charge for these seats, and there may be none left for the tall people.
If we had some kind of "disability" I guess that with current legislation and/or morality they would feel obliged to make special arrangements for us at no extra charge. How should "disability legislation" apply to public transport.
