Project 366 / 31 - Old school style

Time flies, it flies fast. This became abundantly clear last night when I got together with some old friends that I was at school with between the ages of 7-13. Thanks to Facebook we'd reconnected about 5 years ago and gotten together once a year at Christmas. It was always great.

Then for some reason, life probably, we missed a couple of years. The momentum seemed lost and we once again began to drift.

Then I reconnected with another old friend in the middle of last year from the same school. Christmas came round once again but everyone was busy, but we made a date for January and last night was that date.

It's so warming to be with these friends. Doug, who we haven't seen for 31 years was just the same and slotted right in with the rest of us and glancing around the table it was as if time had stood still. The conversation isn't just nostalgic either, in fact less so and that makes these get-togethers just so much more enjoyable. Don't get me wrong, I love reminiscing - the memories I have are things they may have forgotten and visa versa. It makes for very fun conversation.

But the fact that that isn't all we've got to talk about makes me realise that we'll be getting together like this for the rest of our lives.

I truly cherish the time with these guys and it fills my heart to know that as we look back on our time together at school we all agree that those were some of the best years of our lives.

Project 366 / 30 - Starting, stopping and starting again

When I was young I remember going to one of those 'pick-your-own' strawberry fields. To get there you had to jump on the back of this old wagon and then the farmer would have to drive you to where the strawberries were growing. The journey was bumpy and uneven and you would hold on for fear of falling off. It was a fun ride.

Life is like this. You jump on the wagon with good intentions and start down the road of life. It's anything but smooth with rocks and obstacles littered throughout, all poised to throw you off without warning. Some rocks are big, some are small. Some knock you off, some don't. But when you do get knocked off you just have to pick yourself up, dust yourself down and jump straight back on. Don't beat yourself up about it, it's not a competition, it's not a race; it's a journey.

Any day is a good day to jump back on and don't say you're not ready. No one is ever ready. Don't wait for a new year, don't wait for a new month, don't wait for a new week. Don't wait. Now is as good a time as any.

Today could be the first day of the rest of your life. You only get one - make the most of it.

Project 366 / 29 - Call the cats

"Can you get the cats in?"

Why is it that this type of request at home sends shivers down my spine? Is it because they never come when I call them? Maybe it is because when they do they tend to be wet from the rain and rub themselves across my legs? Or maybe it's down to the fact that I, as a man, have to open the back door and call "Dottie!! Moe!!"

"They could be out the front"

Now come on. You know that the crowd of Friday night pub-goers will inevitably mockingly appear. Those neighbours, the sneering passers-by. And I've got to embarrass myself... again.

As guys we name our male pets with more manly names. "Tyson", "Crush" or "Dodger", not "Fluffy, Pixie or Princess". We know what we’re going to have to do and we’re prepared to do it.

And then there are the noises we make to attract our pets; the clicks, kisses, whistles. Anyone would think we've got Tourette’s. And why is it after giving in to the humiliation and trapesing to the front and back 101 times the cats appear within one call from the wife? I'm sure they're out there, sniggering to each other "ha ha, what a prat".

My wife says "I love the cats - do you love the cats?".

I'm more of a dog person.

Project 366 / 28 - Daddy's day

It was "Daddy's" day at Lincoln’s school this morning. He's only 4 and has been counting the days down since the weekend. Last night it was "one more sleep" and this morning, armed with my teddy and toy car lunch box we headed into school.

Within seconds of arriving I was sitting with Edward and George - Lincoln's 2 best friends. Their trust in me was instant, greatly helped by my 101 questions fired from every direction. Then a strange thing happened; 2 children attracted 2 more children. Those 4 children attracted 4 more children and then those 8 children attracted countless more. It was almost like Agent Smith from The Matrix, multiplying endlessly albeit in goodness rather than evil.

Strangely when the teacher beckoned us to sit on the classroom mat I had 2 children on each arm, 1 on each leg and when I sat down some child that I've never seen before plonked himself down on my lap.

Sadly there were only 3 of us Dad's who had made the effort, 1 of which left mid-morning. I don't mind though, I love the kids, especially at this age and we had lots of fun drawing and playing.

Mid-morning was PE or some exercise class for 15 minutes. I'd call it organised chaos as 15 children bounced around to Kylie's "Locomotion" before being awarded stickers for their best moves.

Lunch was fun and the playground was mad. I glanced over to the only other surviving "dad" who was mercilessly being taken down by a literal army of 4 and 5 year olds. It was like a scene from Platoon.

My only injury was a bite to the leg from Ollie, some half crazed ankle biting carnivore. But I survived, possibly only by calling time out before the werewolf took another chunk.

I love my kids, I miss them when I'm not with them and times like today only make me love them more. Lincoln was so proud, so happy and so excited and spending this quality time with him really fills my already overflowing heart with more love.

Project 366 / 27 - Moaners and doing something about it

Why do people whinge and whine so much? I'm guessing that it's a problem with themselves rather than anyone else. When I hear someone criticize a song on the radio "what a load of rubbish that is" I'll always challenge them by asking "how is your song writing going?".

People have literally zero idea about how hard it is to get heard and how difficult it is to be noticed in today's noisy and busy world. The super highway is busy; you'll have to have a tonne of talent and a huge dollop of luck to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right product.

A prime example of this is a friend of mine who, by career, is an actress. Her husband is an actor. Both of them have had measured success (of course measured success as an actor is just having some kind of continual employment). A friend of hers was having a chat with TV insider and they got onto the subject of projects and what was in the pipeline. What came out of the conversation was quite obvious; they are always looking for new ideas and new material. In other words: the next big thing.

She asked that if she had an idea could she pitch it to him. He said yes, definitely. She spoke to her sister (our friend), they wrote a pilot, pitched it to him, he loved it, he then put it forward to the board and now various channels are in the process of bidding for it. There’s a long way to go and lots more boxes to tick but things are moving very quickly in the right direction.

Her luck has been being in the right place at the right time but been able to back it up with a tonne of talent, i.e. the ability to write something relevant, original and entertaining.

Yes there is a lot of rubbish out there but if you’ve heard it or seen it then it’s gotten made. It’s been produced, it’s been marketed and someone, somewhere has paid a lot of money to do it. Don’t moan about it, instead focus that energy into doing something about it – write your own story, write your own song, produce your own product, market your own service.

Give the audience an alternative.

Project 366 / 26 - Is patience really a virtue?

• I am impatient
• Hesitation frustrates me
• Adverts get in the way
• I'm always waiting on technology to catch up
• There aren't enough hours in the day
• 4G just isn't fast enough
• People drive too slowly
• Opening an app or program takes too long
• I’m tired but I haven’t got time to sleep

I truly believe that time is our most valuable commodity and I'm beginning to understand why. I understand that my time isn’t infinite.

The process of getting older, of witnessing the sheer speed at which life and time passes us by is never short of shocking. Of course when we are young we feel that we have infinite time; that we’re going to live forever. Our mortality is never brought into question. Time appears to pass slowly, probably due to the relation of how long you've been alive to time itself. So for example for a 5-year-old one year is 20% of their entire life. For a 50-year-old however, one year is only 2% of their life.

As I’ve gotten older I have found my tolerance for time wasters to have been greatly reduced. I value my time so much more and I find gratitude in those who share their time with me.

One day I want to be able to look back on my life and smile; smile that I have used my life well, that I have done some good, left my mark and have not wasted my time.

Project 366 / 25 - Arguing, littering and liars

I'm not an argumentative person, not really. But when you are faced with an accusation or someone acting in an inappropriate way it's difficult to ignore. Graffiti and littering wind me up big time. I was walking through our local town some time ago and witnessed a bunch of youths just throw their McDonalds litter on the floor. My blood boiled immediately and I ran up to them and told them in no uncertain terms to use the bin that they were standing next to. On this occasion they apologised, picked up the rubbish and disposed of it properly. Another time it could have resulted in a dangerous confrontation.

What brings people to go this? What is their mentality? Were they brought up or dragged up?

How do you argue with a liar? It's impossible. I find them some of the worst people to deal with. I was talking to a “customer” earlier today and they blatantly lied about a prior arrangement. They knew it. I knew it. All I could do was chuckle; I couldn’t win this argument.

All I’m asking everyone to be is honest. I can deal with a human error. I can deal with an honest mistake. You have to remember that being honest and solving a problem can actually improve relationships. After all a good relationship is only forged by trust.

Project 366 / 24 - Social networks and interaction

I'm enjoying writing. I'm enjoying the daily deadline of writing a blog post, of having the pressure of commitment and the anticipation of what words are going to fall from my fingertips. I'm also enjoying discovering so many interesting people on Medium.

The main social networks tend to be anything but social;
Facebook - A place where most people post just the best bits from their lives, tricking the world into believing the impossibly perfect world in which they live.
Instagram - Let me show you just how perfect I can look (with the right lighting, best filters and pout).
Twitter - Soooo busy, you're never going to read most of my greatest words and thoughts.
Snapchat - Well I've just downloaded that and I'm already confused

I've also downloaded Pinterest which I kind of like but rarely open, flipboard which I really like but rarely open, Periscope which I've never used but have started to get follower on (how do they ever find me) and Google+ which I always forget to post my business stuff on.

Why did MySpace fail? Isn't Facebook just a copy of MySpace just presented differently? MySpace used to be the social network, I'm not sure how it all went so badly wrong for them.

The power of interaction is so vastly overlooked, it's something that I'm trying to put the time into to connect to like minded people. Social networks are meant to be social, they're meant to be there to connect, to talk to, to "network". Be raw, be available and give credit where credit is due.

A like is a pat on the back, a kind comment is a huge compliment, it means so much and so often it's the fuel or the oxygen that people need to carry on.

Project 366 / 23 - Running on empty, Chase Jarvis and concentrating on you

Today's run didn't go so well but I'm finally beginning to learn that I can't just expect to be able to do a long run without some degree of preparation.

• I need a good volume of carbs the night before my run
• Don't drink whiskey in sizeable quantities the night before my run, no matter how much I think I "deserve" it.
• Leave plenty of (but not too much) time after eating breakfast before my run
• Water is my friend
• Energy bloks might be a good idea on longer runs

I ran 12.2 miles. Normally it's just my knees that stop me from running but today it was just my energy levels. By 11 miles I'd had enough but somehow mustered up the energy to get home. But I did it.

The only good thing about running is the time to think. This sort of time for me is rare but it's important. I finally came up with the meta tags for my work website that had been eluding me for literally months. I thought up a handful of more content ideas for the digital and social media marketing that I'm getting involved in. It's a good use of the mind-numbingly boring process of running and stops, if only momentarily, my mind from telling me to stop running.

I watched episode 19 of Chase Jarvis RAW this morning (here's the link). In it he was talking about resolutions (most people give up on their New Years resolutions within 8 days - 8 DAYS!!). He made some interesting suggestions about effecting change in your life and how small changes in habit can affect big changes in your life. It made perfect sense. Don't look at the daunting big picture, break it down into mouth sized bites, they'll be far easier to digest.

Comparing yourself to others can have a very negative affect. Sure you can learn from others, you can listen to others but you should focus your concentration on being the very best version of yourself that you can possibly be. The only real competition is with yourself. The moment you start concentrating on yourself rather than everyone else the happier and more successful you'll be. Besides, what people tell you is very often very different than the reality.

Project 366 / 22 - DiCaprio and Trident

What makes a classic actor? Age? Experience? Longevity?  I'd like to think all the above plus a big dollop of diversity. Step forward Leonardo DiCaprio. Here's a man who has not relied on his good looks for success but has tended to take challenging roles to expand his considerable skills.

Forgetting Titanic - what about Gangs of New York, Shutter Island, Blood Diamond, Catch me if you Can, The Aviator, The Departed, Inception, Wolf of Wall Street... the list goes on and on. Either he is very lucky in his choices or a very astute decision maker. I'd say the latter as I haven't yet seen a turkey.

I went to see The Revenant last night. The acting was immersive, the cinematography stunning and the story harrowing. It's difficult to think of another actor who could have done a better job. In my opinion his Oscar is long overdue.

£31b on Trident - really? Does the UK really need a nuclear deterrent? We're a small island with big allies and this kind of money could be so much better spent. We are one of only 9 countries who hold nuclear weapons. The argument is that "if someone attacks Britain with a nuclear weapon we need to be in a position to respond". OK like that's going to end well.

Alternatively the country could invest in its future instead of its end. Now doesn't that sound better.

Project 366 / 21 - Technology

I have a real love / hate relationship with technology. Month to month goes by without me buying myself anything but when I do I usually buy something electronic.... and expensive.

My recent purchases have included an Apple iWatch and iMac. I love them, I love the look, the feel and their technological potential. I just wish I had a bit more time to learn how to use them properly and get the most out of them. But what is it with the volume of software updates? My home iMac recently did 4 million updates leaving me unable to use the machine for the whole time I had allotted. My work PC did 158 updates this week alone putting me out of work for 24 hours. Now my iWatch wants to do an update which doesn’t seem to want to happen.

If my family are anything to go by I must be pretty good at anything IT, after all every time I see my Mum or Dad they pull out their iPad, iPhone or laptop and ask me to either fix something or show them how to do something. The latter is always accompanied with that blank look that tells me that it's all going in one ear and out the other. Hold on, isn't that exactly what they used to accuse me of when I was young?

For anyone who runs their own small business you'll know that you are the go-to-guy. You’re the one person, the only person who knows how to fix a computer problem, sort out a jamming photocopier, replace the empty loo roll etc… you know, all the technical stuff. And somehow you manage it, nearly every time, thus fueling people’s belief that you are indeed, the one.

I love technology. I hate technology.

Project 366 / 20 - Driving

Driving; some would say it is an art form and an experience.  It’s certainly a skill but it’s something that’s beginning to feel more like a liability. We're all driving around in these metal cages, split seconds from certain death whilst casually singing along to a song on the radio, talking on the phone or to our passengers or worse still - texting or posting some message on a social media platform that obviously just can't wait.

We're not actually concentrating on what we're doing but being reactive in a sub-conscious way. The next time you take a car journey and when you reach your destination just take a moment to try and recall the journey, you won't be able to - we're zoned out.

Center Parcs is a car-free zone. Once you’ve arrived and unloaded your belongings you directed to park your car until departure. The result? A calm, safe, and friendly environment. You don’t really notice just how calm and friendly it is until departure date when peoples tempers and road rage returns as the rat race to leave commences.

Indicating as you make your turn
Not indicating at all
Not saying thank you
Inconsiderate parking
Cutting up
Cutting in
Being on your phone

The road I live in is single track. Most of the time one person will give way to another, no problem. But every now again the opposing traffic will not give way and tempers flare. Yesterday I saw a woman put her handbrake on and pull out a book to read, adamant that she wasn’t budging. Amazing.

Some years ago I commented to one of our couriers that I found it amazing that he could drive in London and read a map at the same time. “Oh that’s nothing” he said, “I’m driving, reading a map, eating a sandwich and talking on the phone at the same time”.

Project 366 / 19 - The Oscars are alright

I'm not racist and to be honest I don't know anyone who is. My best friend at school was black and most of my friends growing up came from a multitude of countries; India, Pakistan, Nigeria, China, Italy and South Africa to name but a few. I also don't believe that many people are racist either - there are certainly a sect that are but the majority aren't. As usual it's the minority that spoil it for the majority and it's the minority that seem to get all the attention.

There is a story in the news at the moment saying that there are calls for a boycott at the Oscars over the predominance of white actors and film with only white characters being shortlisted. Do you really think that the judges behind the Oscars are racist? That they have purposely only shortlisted white actors? Or maybe, just maybe they have gone on merit and performance and it is just a co-incidence? Do you think that they even noticed until it was highlighted so vocally and publicly in the media? I'm not saying that I agree with all their choices but still, I think everyone is taking this a bit too far.

The world is certainly taking a new direction. To create a more equal, realistic representation of society;

Every school show has to include a person from an ethnic minority regardless of ability
Every kids TV show has to have a coloured and/or asian character

All this or people start getting offended. Cater for everyone and then you won't offend anyone.

It's like giving all the kids a medal at the end of the race to save the crushing feeling of losing. Yeah like that's real life.

Project 366 / 18 - The doctors

I use to think that my doctors surgery was unique, that their approach, their service and their attitude towards their patients was exclusive to us. But talking to various people in different locations it appears that I was wrong. Nearly all NHS doctors surgeries are employed by the same irrational, rude, obnoxious, self-opinionated and jobsworth staff.

I hardly ever go to the doctors and I thought that would stand me in good stead. I know there are time wasters; hypochondriac coach potatoes with nothing better to do than keep popping pills and potions in between bouts of whinging. I know that and I know that these people make the job for the staff somewhat testing. But you'd think when they're faced with someone who they rarely see they'd appreciate that if I'm coming to the doctors then I must be feeling pretty rough.

The surgery opens to take appointments at 8am and on the dot of 8am the phone is engaged. I've hit re-dial literally 100+ times before getting through only to be told that there are no remaining appointments available.

Whenever I phone the doctors this is the standard conversation that I have with their firewall of a receptionist;

"Can I make an appointment for tomorrow then please?"
"No, we're fully booked for 2 weeks. I can offer you something in 3 weeks time?"
"I won't need to see a doctor in 3 weeks, I need to see one today"
"You'll have to call again tomorrow morning, we open at 8am"

If by chance there is an appointment available I get asked "what seems to be the problem?". What so you're a doctor now? What the hell has it got to do with you? Now I know that they want to see if the nurse can help but their line of questioning leaves you feeling violated and they seem to revel in the "power".

A short while ago I had to get an insurance letter signed by the doctors so I phoned the doctors 87 times before finally getting through to the gestapo;

"Hi, I need to get an insurance letter signed by the doctors - how do I get this done please?"
"You'll have to bring the letter in and pay £40"
"£40.00?? To sign a letter, that sounds extortionate"
"Don't have a go at me, I'm only the receptionist"
"Oh so NOW you're only the receptionist!!!"

So yes, I hardly ever go to the doctors.

Project 366 / 17 - Letting kids be kids and sleep

The kids are growing up fast, too fast. Ours are 4 and 8 (or four and a half and eight and a half they would say if they read this). Reece, our eldest, doesn't want to grow up. He says that he loved being a baby and wished he could go back to that stage. Lincoln, our youngest, just wants to be Reece.

Apart from the sleepless nights for the first 3 years of both their lives, Gem and I have loved every moment. It's been a privilege to be their parents and to watch them grow. We feel truly blessed.

You are a long time old, it's a fact. Childhood is a fleeting moment in the relation to a lifetime so I say let children be children as long as they want. I am more than happy to do as much for them as they want. To clean up after them, to tidy up after them, to get things, make things and to play with them in their imaginary worlds. And why not? The responsibility of life will be upon them far too soon. Don't tell them to grow up. That'll happen soon enough and when it does you'll be fondly harping back to their younger days.

And sleep...

Sleep is for wimps
I'll live when I'm alive, sleep when I'm dead.
I ain't got time to sleep

Just a few of the sayings that run through my insomniac head. It's amazing how much sleep you get when you are young, staying in bed until lunch, unable to get up on time without a care in the world. Maybe that's what it is, not having a care in the world. Life changes, you take on responsibilities and dependants, maybe that is why I seem to exist on a maximum of 5 hours a night. Don't get me wrong, I'd love more, I do feel tired but my body and mind is either too active or simply doesn't want any more.

Yeah I'll sleep when I'm dead.

Project 366 / 16 - Fraser and fund raising

A few years ago a friend of ours met the love of her life. Love blossomed, wedding bells rang and before long the patter of tiny feet echoed in their hallway. A few years later they were pregnant again. Life was good, careers were set and the future was certain.

A year or so after Fraser was born they began to notice that he wasn't developing in the same way as his sister. Some time and number of tests later and they were given the shocking news that Fraser had Duchenne, the most severe form of muscle dystrophy. At present there is no cure for this life limiting disease. Suffice to say that there are not enough superlatives in the world to even begin to understand the turmoil they faced.

Life would never be the same again.

I had been raising money over the years for numerous children's charities doing the London marathon and London Triathlon. When we received this terrible news my wife Gem and I vowed to raise money to help find a cure. Rather than just raise money by doing one thing once we decided that all the time we were able, we'd do something every year and to push ourselves in the process. Last year Gem ran the Brighton half marathon and smashed the Three Peaks Challenge well within the 24 hours.

This year we are both running the Worthing half marathon and then Gem is walking the South Downs Way in 3 days and nights (no less than 100+ miles over the South Downs) before then competing in a Miss Fitness body building competition in July. Impressive huh?

But do you know the hardest part? No, not the training (although it is gruelling), no not the actual event. It's the fund raising. The trying to get people to sponsor you. No matter how death-defying the challenge, no matter how impressive or hard it may be, just getting people to put their hands in their pockets is the most challenging part of all.

Sad hey.

Project 366 / 15 - Talking football and liking inappropriate facebook posts

What is it with people's obsession with talking about football? The debate, the disagreements, the analysis, the arguments... I've nothing against the game (FYI my father in law used to be a professional footballer so I've almost had to like it) but I just don't understand why that's all some people can and want to talk about. Yes it's great to be passionate about something but please, have more than one interest and one potential topic of conversation

Admittedly at times in my distant past I enjoyed watching the odd game (ok just the European Championship 1996 - wow that was 20 years ago!) and I have been to a handful of games but they have done nothing more than to make me realise even more that it's just a game. It's not a theatre of dreams, it's a vastly overpriced game littered with overpaid players. Yes they may be talented but there is a disproportionate salary division between the premier league and everyone else.

So there's obviously a lot of saucy stuff on Facebook but I noticed something earlier which made me chuckle. One of our clients, not realising that they were logged in as their company page, liked a series of videos featuring some half naked women. What an epic fail! Not the sort of thing you want your business page to be advertising! Do I tell their boss or just let it go?

Project 366 / 14 - Titles and Alan Rickman

One of my new employees asked earlier what their job title was. They were employed initially as an office junior but are taking on new responsibilities all the time and will naturally move onto bigger and better things. I asked them to name their own title, at which they had no idea so I gave some suggestions and I think one has stuck. The reason for this? Self gratification in front of peers, family and friends. "So what do you do?" - "Oh I'm an operations officer" or "I'm a logistics operator" etc...

Recently I started noticing on LinkedIn the various titles that people give themselves. One of our customers consists of 3 people. There is the owner, an office manager and then an apprentice. The owner states his title is "CEO, Owner, Managing Director and Founder" - jees, that's more titles than employees!

Admittedly in my youth I was a bit vain about my job title but now I prefer to tone it down rather than jazz it up. I was talking to one potential customer yesterday and at the end of our lengthy conversation they asked my name - "Stuart" I replied. "And your surname?" - "Spicer" I replied. At that they became embarrassed and giddy, explaining that if they'd known they were talking to the owner they would have been far more nervous. Nervous? What for? People are funny.

Today we heard the very sad news that Alan Rickman had died at the age of 69 from cancer. That's two people, both 69 and both from cancer within 6 days of each other. From memory he first came to my attention in the film Robin Hood Prince of Thieves where his portrayal of the Sheriff of Nottingham stole the show. Most people gain traction from maybe one thing that they do and for me it was that. I put him in the same bracket as amazing actors like Gary Oldman and Anthony Hopkins. One of our Christmas traditions for my wife and I is to share a bottle of wine on Christmas eve whilst watching Love Actually. The beauty of celluloid is immortality and we look forward to being entertained by Mr Rickman for many years to come.

Alan Rickman RIP
21/02/1946 - 14/01/2016

Project 366 / 13 - The troll brigade, meal replacement shakes and one-click

The Facebook "share if you agree" brigade are back in town, and back with a vengeance.

Now whilst when I see these posts I may agree with what they have to say (I really do love my children / I really do have the best son in the world / I really do love my wife etc..) I don't need to share a stupid post to let them know - I tell them to their face every day. It's called human interaction and communication. And who creates these posts? It's so transparent that all they are trying to achieve is some pathetic level of virality and for what? You think you're going to become internet famous, or get multiple friend requests?

Moving on... I read an interesting article about the dangers of Herbalife and Juiceplus meal replacement shakes. You can apply this to any fast-fix meal replacement crap that's out there. Short-term gain for long term pain - it will come back to bite you on the ass, guaranteed. I don't need to add any more, the article says it all.

I've got a bit of advice for myself - log yourself out of your Amazon and eBay account (and then change your password!). It feels like nearly every day I'm getting an e-mail from one of these sites confirming a purchase. I'm not sure how much stuff we need but most months my wages are spent by the 20th of the month. Yes I've spoken to the culprits about this already, I just needed to get it off my chest (again).

Project 366 / 12 - The weather

There seem to be 2 things that us British love;

1. Queuing
2. Talking about the weather

I despise both but notice it all the time, especially people talking about the weather. Why is that? Have these people got nothing better to talk about? Now if the weather is something to talk about, i.e. excessive rain, sun, lightning, wind, snow, ice etc... (actually I'm not sure what the etc.. could be) then yes, talk about it. But on a general day please refrain from the "oh it was fresh this morning - was your car iced over?". Listen mate, if your car was iced over then it's a pretty much a given that your mates car was iced over too.

"The type of rain that gets you wet" - as opposed to?...
"It's too hot" and then a month later "It's too cold"
"Is it warm enough for you" - why, can you make it hotter?

As if that's not enough to contend with there's those mystical prophets "They". They say it's going to get cold next week (never does). They say we're going to have the hottest summer ever this year (never happens).

Lastly there are the weather apps. "Current weather = 22 degrees, clear skies, sunny"
You look out of the window and see that it's cold, there's heavy cloud and it's raining.

My top tip - don't base your outfit on the weather forecast, just look out of the window and judge what you're going to wear based on what you see.

Project 366 / 11 - David Bowie

David Bowie 08/01/1947 - 10/01/2016

So the man of a million images, who released 26 studio albums, 9 live albums, 46 compilation albums, 5 EP's and 111 singles, who re-invented himself as many times as the world in which he lived has sadly died.

As a boy growing up in the late 70's and early 80's I became quickly aware of Bowie. After all he was at the very height of his commercial powers and releasing hit song after hit song and looking every inch the superstar pop star that he was. I always preferred his slightly earlier work; the albums from Ziggy Stardust through to Lets Dance were just the ultimate staples in any vinyl collection and were all proudly blared on a daily basis. With such a prolific writer I'd be very hard pushed to name my favorite track.

The fact that Bowie found fame is no surprise. In business terms he was the ultimate hustler, knocking down the obstacles of opposition he found in his way, pushing and trying different musically artistic avenues until he gained the recognition he deserved. He then exploited his position, cleverly re-inventing and re-positioning himself in the market and in the process gaining a wider audience and greater fan base.

Not everything he did was of everyone's taste. But when you're pushing the boundaries, experimenting and exploring different musical avenues you're not going to please everyone. I certainly wasn't a fan of Tin Machine but when the album "Black Tie White Noise" came out I felt that it was a real return to form. For me this was a pattern that repeated throughout his career.

Age frustrates me. Illnesses like Cancer anger me. But the immortalisation of legacy reassures me. Rest in peace Mr Jones, you'll never be forgotten.

Project 366 / 10 - eBay, stuff and addiction

eBay - now that's firmly in my mind at the moment. 18 months ago and after some considerable time, I finally began starting to sell some stuff on eBay. It had been building up for quite a long time and I'd been promising myself that I'd get off my ass and get on with it. But as with a lot of things, saying is easier than doing. I guess the pile of stuff that was staring at me was just far too daunting and intimidating that it just put me off.

Then I decided that rather than tackle this huge pile of stuff, I would try and sell just one thing. Ignore the pile, pick up one item and post it on eBay. I put it on for a week and it sold. Oh, that was easy. The following week I just picked up one thing and did the same again. And I repeated this for a number of weeks until I gained the confidence to post a few things at once. Strangely that's when things didn't sell but I think that was just a co-incidence.

By the time I'd finished I'd made enough money to take the wife and kids away to Center Parcs for a week.

The problem was I hadn't finished selling everything and got out of the swing of posting stuff. As I said, that was 18 months ago and since then a new, much larger and impressive pile has formed on top of the old pile.

There's money to be made (or in my case re-couped) in all this old stuff. It's quite shocking just how much stuff we buy, use for a moment and then put to one side, never to be used again. Add children into that mix and the volume of "stuff" increases 100 fold.

I had a customer once who's wife had told him to clear out the loft and so he decided to give eBay a try and soon became an addict. I saw him most days when he brought in his latest sold item for shipping. After 6 months of what seemed daily visits I began to have visions of him sitting on an empty milk crate on the floorboards in the middle of his empty lounge eyeing up the wallpaper, wondering that if he carefully removed it he could sell that on eBay. There really couldn't have been anything left in his house.

Project 366 / 9 - Creativity, £4m+ houses and being an entrepreneur

Well that felt like a long week. We hit the ground running at work which was a bit of (nice) surprise as normally it's a tumble weed week. I've managed to keep to my "every other day" training regime and a reasonable diet plan going and resolution wise this is day 9 of the year and day 9 of my daily blog. So all in all things are going well and to plan.

Creative wise I've started the year well. I've written 2 work blog and linked Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn posts and have a handful of ideas for the next few. I'm also in the process of recruiting a digital/social media apprentice to put into practice the tonne of ideas I've picked up from the inspiring Gary Vaynerchuck over the last few months. It'll also give me the opportunity of taking on the marketing work that I've been offered from a client. This year for me could take a completely different direction than the last.

Gem's been eyeing up £4m+ houses so I think I really need to up my game. They are all grand and some of them are beautiful but I think she's a bit obsessed. She even showed me a Scottish island that was up for sale. Yeah, that's how she rolls.

It got me wondering about how people amass such wealth that they can buy such extravagantly expensive houses. Well I suppose there are the lottery winners, the big-wigs from London who move out to the country, the top exec's and extortionately successful entrepreneurs.

I find it funny how people automatically assume that just because you have your own business that you're rich. They say "oh it's ok for you". Really? Have you any idea of the relentless pressure you're under? The pressure to provide, supply and perform. The risks, the demands, the sacrifices and the sleepless nights. Surely any riches massed along the way are earned and well deserved.

Project 366 / 8 - Food scares and dieting

So the top story in the news today is yet another food cancer scare. This time - alcohol.

So let's just get this right... Whatever you do, do not eat bacon, eggs, red meat, cheese, chocolate, fruit, bread, cereal, butter, sugar, crisps, biscuits, chips, salt, peanuts, grains, even salmon and don't drink tea, coffee, tap water, milk, fruit juice and now alcohol.

Now whilst I am sure that these types of yo-yo conflicting reports pass the vast majority of the population by but I can't help but being mildly irritated by them. Surely it is obvious that a little of everything is ok - everything in moderation, remember? Cancer is a dreadful, traumatic and devastating disease and scares the hell out of everyone. I feel that the reality is that cancer is a lottery. It is a gene mutation, it's something that you may be heredity pre-disposed to get. Of course your lifestyle does have an impact but I believe only in the extreme. Those chain smoking, alcohol guzzling, full fat feasting coach potatoes, well they are testing the limits of their genes.

My advice? Don't rely on too many meal replacement powders, try and eat a balanced diet, get your vitamins and minerals from your food, drink plenty of water, exercise regularly, rest, get fresh air and don't beat yourself up when you have a take-away or a few drinks too many.

Project 366 / 7 - Money and happiness

So the national lottery hit a massive £50m jackpot last night and again no one won. This despite 200 tickets being sold per second in the last few hours before the draw. This Saturday, after rolling over a record 13 times it will hit at least £57.8m.

This is what I read in the news this morning;

"The biggest UK lotto win was in 1995 when colleagues Mark Gardiner and Paul Maddison shared £22m, though Mr Gardiner later revealed the money did not bring him happiness."

The money did not bring him happiness - really? How short sighted, narrow minded and selfish must he be for that to be the case?

Most people work for money. They then use this money to either buy material things, enjoy themselves or buy experiences - this is pretty much all done in their free time. So if you have won this kind of money then you don't have to work, so the money gives you all the free time you could ever wish for. And time is something we all wish we had more of.

It's sad but in my opinion you can't do much without money but you can do a lot with it. With a lottery win you can pay off all your debts and financially set yourself up for life. You can then sort your childrens financial future, your childrens childrens future, your childrens childrens childrens future etc... With the right investment money doesn't ever have to be the constant daily worry and concern that it is for the vast majority of us. You can go anywhere and experience all the things that life and this wonderful world has to offer.

Next think of the good you can do. One of the best feelings in the world is the emotion you get when you help others. I'm not necessarily talking about giving money, after all throwing money at a problem won't necessarily solve it. But by giving time, by giving support and providing solutions to the less fortunate can be worth its weight in gold. It can bring an extortionate level of satisfaction and happiness to all those involved. As they say, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime".

Money buys you time and time is the most valuable commodity of all.

Project 366 / 6 - Running

Running... argh! I would ask who the hell invented it but I guess it'd just date back to some kind of predator. So there I was donning my running gear at silly-o'clock this morning, the wind was blowing, the rain... well thankfully that had stopped after 5 days straight and it was dark, like night-time dark. I left the house for a mid week faster-but-shorter run (I'm an inherent plodder) but after 200 yards I began asking myself what the hell I was doing putting myself through this and why. Well the "what" is for my local towns first ever half marathon and the "why" is for our chosen charity Action Duchenne.

I used to be a good runner. Ok when I say "used to be" I mean when I was at boarding school some 30 years ago. A group of us had "misbehaved" and as punishment the whole year had to go on a 6am cross country run in the snow. Now 6am for a 15 year old is punishment enough but to have to go for a run is sheer torture. To get it over and done with I ran considerably faster than anyone else which, much to my despair, attracted the attention of the school cross country teacher. I was summond to the next cross country training session, was duly drafted into the college cross country team and over the next season became the fastest cross country runner the school had ever seen. Oh and I was a smoker.

When I left school at 16 I stopped running and joined the local gym instead. My non-existent love affair with running was well and truly over.

Fast forward to my impending 40th birthday. I wanted to mark the occasion so somehow persuaded myself to run the London Marathon. Admittedly I loved the actual event but I despised every minute of the training (you can read my blog about the whole thing here). After the marathon I didn't run again for a couple of years until I decided to do the Olympic distance London Triathlon. After the triathlon my business hasn't really allowed me the time to dedicate to anything (or that's my excuse anyway). My lovely wife kind of took the personal challenge mantle from me last year and raced a PB half marathon in Brighton and then crushed the 24 hour 3 peaks challenge. This year she's running the Worthing half marathon with me before trekking the southdowns way (100+ miles) for 3 days in May and competing in a Miss Fitness body building competition in July. Ah what it is to be shy huh!

But I still hate running. It's as much mental as physical and I fight with myself nearly every step of the way. So if you are a runner and are having the same struggles then please know that you aren't on your own. And if you are entering a half or full marathon I will leave you with the wise words I saw on a sign towards the end of the London Marathon. It read "the pain is temporary but the glory lasts forever".

Project 366 / 5 - Time

What is time and why are some consumed and overwhelmed with the passing of it? In these modern times where every second of our lives is seemingly scheduled, where we are expected to be available almost 24 hours a day, 7 days a week it feels that we have less time now than we've ever had in the history of our evolution. This in turn makes us obsess over the passing of it and the way we monitor it.

Of course it hasn't always been this way. When we were young time seemed to pass almost in slow motion, possibly down to the relation of time we'd been alive. That said my eldest son who is only 8 said that he felt that this last year has gone by so fast. He's obviously having far more fun than I ever did at his age.

With the kids at school suddenly the year is broken up into segments - terms, half terms, Easter, holidays, birthdays, Halloween, bonfire night and Christmas to name but a few. The monitoring of time surely is just a singular method of tracking, scheduling & regulating our lives, something that our ancestors weren't concerned with but it's now something of obsession.

So choose how you spend yours wisely and value those who give you their time, after all time has become the most valuable commodity of all.

Project 366 / 4 - Staying focused, fat PT's and respect

New year new you? Yeah me too. But after the initial burst of enthusiasm are you already finding it hard to stay focused? I always find my mind wanders from the path when I'm not being supported by like-minded people. It helps if you are surrounded by the types of people who you'd like to emulate. That may be like-minded driven business people, a person with the type of lifestyle you envy or a fitness coach who possesses the kind of body you want.

The kind of body you want. So why is it that so many fitness coaches or PT's don't possess any kind of enviable body? My local gym employs numerous PT's, most of which obviously don't follow their own advice on nutrition or training as they are fatter than the clients they are trying to get fit. Is it because the gym owners don't want their PT's to appear too physically intimidating? Or is it a "Do as I say, not as I do" football managers approach?

One of the reasons I run my own business is the fact that I can't stand being told what to do. In my business I've done every job there is to do - I've been there, seen it and done it and my employees know it too. As a result they will happily complete any assigned task. If I wasn't prepared to do it myself do you think that they would have the same approach or respect?

Project 366 / 3 - Last day of holiday, swimming and being on your phone

So it's the final day of both my and Lincoln's Christmas holidays. Tomorrow he goes back to learn and I go back to earn. It's a sickening feeling in some ways but as they say, all good things must come to an end. Reece however has yet another week of holiday and my beautiful wife, well that's a whole other story.

I took Reece to his swimming lesson yesterday and couldn't help but notice that I was the only parent who spent the 30 minutes actually watching their child swim. Literally everyone else was on and off their phone the whole time. If their children are anything like Reece then every now and again they'd look up to their parents for either attention, praise or reassurance but would be answered with nothing. Nothing but the sight of the top of their parents head whilst their eyes were lost in a digital world.

This makes me both sad and annoyed. Sad for the children and annoyed that the parents can't just give 30 minutes of their undivided attention. I don't know how this affects children or what they think but I don't think it can be anything but negative.

Last year I remember watching Wimbledon and one of the top seeds came on to the court, yards from the crowd. I'd say 90% of them were either filming him or taking a photo of him on their iPad or iPhone, totally missing the physical moment with their own eyes choosing instead to capture it on a device. Surely if you want to see the moment on a device then just stay at home and watch it on the TV?

Don't get me wrong, I love my phone and the what it can do. I love spending time on it reading, communicating, watching and learning about things - it's a powerful tool. But surely it's there to support your life, not be your life.

Project 366 / 2 - Clearing out the cupboards and being on the wagon

So it's the 2nd January. Talking the resolution talk is easy, walking the resolution walk can be a whole other story.

Here at home we've pretty much cleared out the cupboards of all the high fat foods and high sugar snacks. You know, the ones which I wasn't allowed to open before Christmas as they were specifically for Christmas (this included opening the cheese at 10pm on Christmas eve) and yet here we are now literally throwing the stuff away so we can conform to our new healthy eating regime. It's a crazy time and a crazy waste of money.

Drinking has stopped too but in fact this isn't necessarily a bad thing. I used to wonder how someone could become an alcoholic. When I was younger I couldn't even start to imagine drinking the day after a night out. In fact even the thought of a "hair of the dog" could induce vomit. Nowadays though I can happily drink day after day and actively look forward to it. Maybe the quality of drink has something to do with it, maybe my constitution has changed, maybe I'm becoming an alcoholic. I can't leave a bottle of wine unfinished and whiskey has taken on a life of it's own. My wife measured my standard glass of neat whiskey and found it contained 5 shots. I'd have at least 2 of these whilst just watching a film at home. Excessive? Maybe... Tasty? Definitely!

So yes, we're back on the wagon, as if to prove that we're not unfit, bloated alcoholics and so far it's a pizza cake. Did someone say pizza?

Project 366 / 1 - Resolutions, getting fit and business

In some ways I love the new year.  It's a time of fresh starts, of new beginnings and a series of promises to ourselves to be a better person. The revolution of resolutions is of constant amusement. We are, after all, creatures of habit and these habits can be pretty hard to break.

The title of this post is "Project 366/1" and the "Project" is a challenge to myself to write a blog post every day of 2016. I've tried to be more consistent in the past and literally failed miserably. The reason for my resolution is to re-ignite my creativity and I feel that writing is the first step. I'll either pick a topic to write about every day or simply my thoughts on a subject in the news - that's it.

Aside from this project I've also made the additional promises to myself of getting back to healthy eating, hitting the gym as regularly as I used to, making a bit more time for myself, not working such long hours, being more social, selling all our old stuff on eBay that has been piling up everywhere, not drinking as much etc... you know, the usual stuff.

I think my work life is going to be a bit more of a challenge this year. I'm trying to grow my business so bought my next door warehouse last June which literally doubles our capacity. We've just about finished all the works in the warehouses to make them as fresh and professional as possible and I spent the end of the year recruiting. I've potentially one more person to find and then the team will be complete for now. The plan is to spend the year on sales and marketing to bring in the business to pay for the investment. It's something that I really want to do but promoting the business through digital marketing requires content, so that's another reason for this project.

So that's post 1 of 366 done, nothing ground breaking but a start. Happy new year to everyone - start strong, work hard and be nice.