Richard Maun

Category: Uncategorized

  • You Have Permission

    A Triumph Drool
    A Triumph Drool

    To smile.

    To be good enough.

    To say ‘No’ or ‘Not Yet’.

    To share a feeling with a special friend.

    To arrive early and enjoy feeling calm.

    To find a way of making a dull job fun.

    To stop and think for a minute.

    To stop and do something different.

    To be proud of what you do really well.

    To admit that you’re really talented.

    To get help.

    To admit ignorance.

    To enjoy being you.

    To spend an extra five minutes with someone you love.

    To start a new project.

    To feel scared, get support and get going.

    To buy a motorbike and drive safely…

    This list was inspired by my friend Fallah, who wanted a book of permissions. Here is a start! 

    Please let me know if you would like permission for something and I will add it to the list.

  • How Useful Is Misery?

    Creative Commons: Sean Loyless
    The Famous Crenshaw Hand Car Wash in LA

    In the Summer I was miserable. I’m not afraid to admit that I have feelings. Feelings are good and without them life is simply a dull conveyor belt of experiences without depth or meaning.

    I was miserable that business had declined, that a course I loved teaching on had ended and that the Summer was over. And then…

    …And then I remembered that if a previous job hadn’t finished I would not have had a business to be miserable about… and this prompted me into thinking that endings can be good, as they clear the way for new and interesting opportunities to flourish. Feeling miserable was my wayof marking the end of some good times, a kind of inner car wash for the Volvo of my soul. Cars and souls need a bit of a scrub up sometimes.

    Not knowing exactly what to do next, I decided to do several things and see were they led. I joined a new networking group called The Best of Norwich and taught myself how to use Twitter, Bitly, Facebook ads and Google ads, booked a few speculative meetings and even managed to play a minor scale on my bass guitar… And now?

    Now, my diary is filling up. I have two new clients, my books have been marketed effectively and I have a couple of interesting career opportunities to play with. All because I allowed myself to feel miserable and come to a stop, rather than brushing my feelings aside and plodding on in the same old direction.

    So let’s hear it for Misery! A useful emotion that can help us to find new directions!