Do you know when to give up? Some great advice for those of us who struggle to let go of a project which isn’t working Learning about Culture: The importance of arts based learning, the limits of what we know about it, and the challenges of evaluating it. Results of the largest UK randomised controlled…
Exploring ideas of professional and non-professional artists Lots of material to think with in a great series of blogs from Francois Matarasso on the differences between professional and non-professional artists Five principles for thinking like a futurist A great piece from the Institute for the Future written in March 2019 which offers a good process…
An introduction to Action Research as a tool for organisational change
Here we are at the beginning of September. I don’t know about you but it hardly feels like the summer had got going and we’re already at its end. September is one of the way markers in the year for me. We’re moving into Autumn, the start of a new ‘term’ or season, a point…
#shiftthepower A powerful call to action across sectors. How good is the cultural sector at recognising when it needs to give up its power and step back? #ShiftThePower is both a call for new behaviours, mindsets and ways of working and a reminder both that few interactions are ever power neutral and that often, those…
The Human Touch: making art | leaving traces Fascinating and timely exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge looking at human touch, the sense whose use has been so restricted in the pandemic, across cultures and time. Closes on 1 August. Anthro-Vision A new book from anthropologist turned journalist, Gillian Tett …, trying to navigate…
7 questions to get value from board meetings A short but really valuable post on how executive teams can get more value out of board meetings. Do read if this quote resonates with you. How valuable do you find your board meetings? If you use them only to present results, share your learnings, or provide…
I am a theatre – Swiss Cottage Gallery until 31 July A wonderful exhibition telling the 40 year story of Clean Break, a women’s theatre company founded by two women who met in prison in 1979. I am a theatre. Sometimes I turn myself inside out. I am a very flexible theatre… a world within…
Does another roaring twenties await? Find your courage to make the most of the post-pandemic world I don’t necessarily agree with all of the content we share in these wide ranging collections. What I like to share are things that have made me think, or argue back, or change my perspective. This is definitely one…
It takes two flints to make a fire. (Louisa May Alcott) Originally devised as a paper based questionnaire approach the Delphi Technique can also be used for face to face group sessions. It is a technique that encourages a variety of opinions but that through a series of discussion cycles it moves towards a group…
Should we ‘level up’ social needs? New research from NPC explores the Government’s ‘levelling up’ funds and agenda and makes the case for funding to focus on social needs as well as infrastructure. To meet people’s expectations, levelling up funds should have collaboration with the voluntary and community sectors hard wired into them and funding…
One of the reasons I enjoy being a freelancer is that I am not good with routine. If I think I am going to have to repeat the same thing too often I quickly find other distractions. I appreciate I am very fortunate to have this flexibility. I don’t think it is driven by a…
For smarter decisions empower your employees A good and timely piece from McKinseys on how to delegate decision making with two very useful frameworks around identifying different kinds of decisions and different kinds of management behaviour. This piece is part of a wider selection of short articles on decision making that are well worth a…