Monday Morning Musings

Dealing with Drains & Rejoicing Through Radiators- From October 9th 2023

Morning Team.

I hope you all had a lovely weekend and managed to relax. Here’s what’s been on my mind over the past week.

What I LEARNED

Who is the most positive person you know? I’m sure we all have someone in our lives who is energetic, happy, supportive, upbeat and seems to remain in this permanent state of enthusiasm no matter what the situation. If you do know someone like this, then congrats as you’ve found yourself a ‘radiator’ person.

Wait, what?!

Last week I was fortunate to attend a fundraising event hosted by the ex-England Rugby World Cup winning coach Clive Woodward. In his speech about what it takes to succeed and achieve big bold goals, he called out the importance of who you have on your team. For this he used the analogy of ‘drains’ and ‘radiators’, and the importance of removing any ‘drain’ negativity, as it will hold you back from where you want to go.

The positive person example I mentioned at the beginning are called ‘radiators’ since they warm the company they are in, as opposed to ‘drains’ who sap the energy from a room and leave people feeling depleted.

Last week I had the misfortune to spend time with a couple of ‘drains’ in separate circumstances, and it’s amazing the impact this can have on you. I’d not experienced this for a while, and it really did deplete me and leave me in a negative state, something I really didn’t enjoy feeling. Fortunately I have a strong support network of ‘radiators’, so I could talk to my family and friends about how I was feeling to overcome my state, but it was a reminder to me the impact that ‘drainners’ can have in our lives.

What I learned from these experiences last week, is to always try to manage my state accordingly, to never lower yourself to another person’s level, and no matter how negative things may seem, always try to focus on the positives in your life.

What I LOVED

Last week whilst working from home, I made a real effort to get away from my desk at lunchtime, and try to switch off from whatever I was doing. On Friday my wife and I went for a walk together in the local park during lunch, and after a challenging week, I loved spending some quality 1 on 1 time with her (we are usually taxiing the kids from clubs), and being able to talk about all the things going on in my head. It felt so good to share my thoughts and get a very different perspective on work, as well as re-connect 1 on 1.

It’s amazing how sometimes it’s the small, simple things in life that can have the biggest impact. It’s also a reminder to me how important it is to make time for our loved ones, as so often we can end up forgetting about them and prioritising work and life in general.


What I LIKED

I watched the David Beckham Docu-Series last week, more out of curiosity than anything, but ended up getting sucked into watching the whole 4 episodes. It was nostaligic thinking back to the various moments in his footballing career, as well as hearing what his view of each siutation was at that time.

The relationship with his father, the impact on his family, the immense pressure he faced everywhere he went yet still had the drive to keep going and prove people wrong every step of his journey.

Here is someone who exemplifies Hardwork, Humility and Harmony in everything he has achieved in his life to date. Worth a watch if you aren’t a football fan.

Final thought

Here is some music to kick start your week.

Have a successful week everyone.

Thank you for reading and I hope that you have a successful and fulfilling day.

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