TheMaverickSergeant

Compassionism: Helping Business Leaders Create Engaged Teams and Happy People Whatever your role, if you lead people and want them to make a positive contribution within your organisation, this book is essential reading. Yes, the front cover is adorned with an oh-so-common platitude regarding people being the ‘greatest asset’. And, no, it is not about being a fluffy, soft, or cuddly leader. Compassionism is a candid, open, relationship-orientated book that hones in on collective communication and humanity. It is a book about people influencing people in a meaningful way. There are, nevertheless, nods to more sympathetic, lenient, and gentler qualities of leadership and management… and rightly so. To lead people, we really ought to do so in an authentic way which shows that we actually care about them and are there for them. Without these seemingly underutilised quieter qualities, leaders will continue to grapple with actually connecting to their people — the world of work needs more le...

Image: GeologyIn LONG READ: Climate Change and Unity Introduction This article will show that the study of climate politics can reveal how successfully different actors have sought to govern the international system. Actors have, in part, successfully done this but there is a long way to go if efforts are to have any lasting and meaningful effect. The article will use neorealism and liberal institutionalism, structured on regime theory, as a handrail to show that actors in the anarchical international system cooperate successfully in order to govern climate change. How and why they are successful will be explored in detail using the two theoretical approaches, each having their strengths and weaknesses to discuss. The finding that although there is much to be done, and in difficult settings, different actors in the international system have successfully sought to govern issues within it — especially so when assessing the question through a liberal institutionalist approach. Empirical f...

Image: myDr Depression is... feeling alone in a room full of people feeling like you don’t belong feeling an overbearing guilt for the way you behave and the person you are feeling like you can’t connect with the close people in your life feeling like you have to fight it alone feeling like you don’t have answers to questions until it’s too late to answer them feeling like a heavy burden to everyone around you feeling like it’s all your fault feeling like there is no end to it feeling despair when work mounts up feeling furious at people who try to normalise mental ill health to make themselves feel unhindered feeling indecisive about what’s right for you and what’s wrong for you feeling like you can’t answer the phone. Even the office phone feeling anxious when you bump into someone you should say hello to feeling trapped in social situations feeling no desire to eat three meals a day feeling like you can’t be bothered to shower or take the bins out feeling exhausted because you have ...

Image credit:  Medium Living an immortal life would be ultimately meaningless. There, I said it! Let’s talk about why. I’ll go about defending this claim by first detailing what it is to live a meaningful life, whether happy or otherwise, then go on to extend those thoughts into considerations of immortality. I’ll also propose that an evil life is not necessarily meaningless, before moving on to begin exploring how death is paramount to the meaningfulness of a life. Possible counter responses will then be discussed in favour of a meaningful immortal existence, but be repeatedly quashed throughout, before the meaninglessness of an immortal life is further strengthened by perplexing examples of the boredom problem — and how this ultimately destroys the prospect of a meaningful immortal existence. A meaningful mortal life can be considered in more ways than one. It is possible to consider a life being meaningful where the bearer is successfully growing with relevant accomplishments o...

(img:Brookings) The challenging and rewarding world of School Governance while serving in the Armed Forces. “ …Do you think your profession helps? Should we be encouraging more military to help in this area because we are good at assessment and report type work?… ” ~ @puddlepirateltd These questions were a response to a tweet that I sent regarding a small win I’d had as a School Governor. And in short, absolutely. I firmly believe our profession helps and that we should encourage more military personnel to help in this area. Why? “ If leaders want to impart knowledge, they first need to be on a continual path of progression . ” I stand behind this way of thinking, and I’m of the belief that if you can do something for others you should ( R2P , anyone?).  For me, there’s a significant pull towards improving the lives of others. Let me explain a little. Coming from a poverty-stricken background I left school with seven D grades and one C at GCSE. But, I got a lucky break (or more to...

           Image: ScreenGeek For many centuries people have had an appetite for spine-tingling narrative art. Some of which brings about pain and aims to stimulate negatively charged emotions. As such, it becomes perplexing as to why it is acceptable for people to deliberately seek experiences through art which can, among other apparently negative responses, shock, sadden and frighten. Rational thinking dictates that people would steer clear of such experiences in their day to day lives. Yet, they actively seek out said experiences through artworks. Therein holds the paradox of painful art. David Hume’s solution to the paradox of painful art offers that pain is converted into pleasure. This essay disagrees. To defend this, a number of flaws will be exploited and discussed in order to prove that Hume does not resolve the paradox. Ultimately this essay will convey that the problem is multifaceted and complex, and requires far more than his broad explanation t...