The habit of comparing ourselves unfavourably with other people damages our self-esteem and wellbeing even during the best of times. When we experience more challenging times, it can take very little to make ourselves and our lives feel really rubbish. It wasn’t quite so bad in the olden days when […] Read more »

Values are the ideas that define the way we view the world. They are the abstract notions on which we base our judgements of what is important in life. Our values shape our choices and decisions. The way we behave, how we live and work, our relationships with ourselves and […] Read more »

At particular periods in all our lives, it isn’t possible to have face-to-face contact with the people who matter to us. It doesn’t matter that much these days, we say blithely, because of all the possibilities for voice and video calls. We can still see each other. We can still […] Read more »

You might wonder what would be the point of writing a letter during this period of forced separation and constrained activity. After all, we’ve got the technology which enables us to see and talk to each other, even though we are miles apart. When you can actually get a large […] Read more »

The contours of our lives have changed. For now, we don't have the regular rhythms and rituals which give shape to our days. Without the activities which normally punctuate our waking hours, we are faced with a shapeless mass of time which we need to mould into a recognisable and manageable form. Read more »

It's not often that tools for improving productivity and effectiveness in the workplace can be happily transferred to our personal lives, but with a little bit of tweaking, the technique called the Five Whys may provide a way of helping us deal with personal pressure and demands. Read more »

For years and years, the practice of making fun of fat or thin people has been a staple of cartoons, picture postcards, film and television comedies, books and stories. It’s what we do, mock and marginalise our fellow humans who don’t conform to some manufactured ideal of physical appearance. The […] Read more »

The phrase ‘the generation gap’ came into common usage in the 1960s. It referred to the lack of understanding between the older generation, born earlier in the century, and the new tribe of teenagers and young people which emerged after World War Two. Depending on your viewpoint, the younger generation […] Read more »

The Oxford English Dictionary has asked the public to contribute examples of the work-specific language — slang, technical terms, acronyms, ‘in’ phrases — which is current in their profession. The fine lexicographers at the OED are following the practice of Sir James Murray, who in 1878 took on the huge […] Read more »

It can be very hard to resist the pressure to drink, and to deal with the suggestion which is sometimes implied that your refusal means that you are boring, or weird, or a killjoy, or that you are being judgemental about other people. What could be more social than a […] Read more »

Once upon a time, way back in the day when there were only two television channels available and they were both in black and white, the only people interested in exam results were those directly involved. The results arrived at your house by post, in an envelope addressed to you, […] Read more »