How We Do Matters

One of the owners of Melbourne’s most iconic café died tragically a week ago. Sisto Malaspina had been serving espresso to Melburnians at Pellegrini’s since 1974. Tributes poured in from across the community about the impact he and his café had on people and the city. The one that struck me was the story told by…

Read More

Missed

If Jason suddenly stopped coaching at our local gym, we would miss how he tries to get the best from everyone, even when we don’t feel like getting the best from ourselves. Plenty of people would miss the energy James and his team create at KereKere cafe, their warm welcome and the intention behind everything…

Read More

Leaving A Trail

The contractors who mow the lawn in the public spaces where my parents live whizz around on ride on lawnmowers. They don’t get off to move obstacles, trim edges or collect the grass. The job is done in no time. But for the next few days, cut grass blows around the suburb and is trailed…

Read More

What Could You Leave Unsaid?

When I was in high school, the geography syllabus required us to study South America for a whole year. One of our teachers who had a special interest in South America decided to make it her business to teach us everything she knew about the continent. Everything. No stone was left unturned, no river basin…

Read More

Just Because You Can

The role of the hotel concierge can be a challenging one. The concierge has to think on his feet. He must immediately earn each new guest’s trust, give people what they don’t always know they want and solve problems on the fly. Some people are better at this than others.  The good concierge knows the…

Read More

Keep Your Eye On The Ball

It was hard not to get swept up by the Serena Williams, US Open final story this week. It was difficult to avoid joining the debate about how it could all have played out differently if only this had been said or that had been done. That time spent thinking about what should have been…

Read More

The Disciplined Marketer

It’s 6.30 am at the hotel gym, and the guests who are keen to get a workout in before breakfast are lining up. The receptionist is taking their room numbers before admitting them. As they turn to walk away, gym towel and bottle of water in hand, she asks if they’d like to book in…

Read More

Culture Creation

Our usual Friday morning workout instructor is on holiday for a month. The first sign that something has changed in his absence is a drop in the number of people who attend. The time slot is the same. The workout is identical. But fewer people are motivated to come. We’re not just getting up early…

Read More

A Stop Start Guide To (Business) Success

Stop worrying about how to get attention. Start paying attention. Stop obsessing about creating awareness. Start being more aware. Stop making people want things. Start making things people want. Stop analysing the data. Start seeing the people it represents. Stop trying to be more interesting. Start being interested. Stop thinking about their advantage. Start with…

Read More

The Power Of Identity In A Competitive World

Nobody who read the pre-match reports or the post-match statistics would have predicted a one-all draw. Iceland, a country with a population of 334,000, was fielding a team of semi-professional players, in their World Cup debut against Argentina, one of the world’s best footballing nations. There was no way Iceland could compete with the experience…

Read More