Project 366 / 244 - Retirement, reverse engineering and time stamps

When someone mentions retirement what pictures do you conjure up? What do you believe that retirement means? If you google image "retirement" you'll see photos of old people sitting on a beach. Really? Is that what it means?

Well for every generation before me retirement meant a carriage clock, a pension, a spot of gardening and sitting on the sofa waiting to die. Sounds harsh but it's so true. I still know people like this. People who have spent their lives being incredibly active only to retire to the sofa and then sadly passing away far too early.

The mind is an amazing thing. Like in The Matrix, if you die in the matrix you die in real life. Why? Because the body can't live without the mind. This tells you everything you need to know about longevity. Keep moving, keep learning, keep stretching and keep exercising your mind and the body will follow. Use it or lose it.

So in todays world retirement has evolved to be simply a new chapter. For many business people retirement means stopping working for someone else and begin pursuing your own passion. For entrepreneurs like me it's just another time stamp. It's a date by which I want someone else running my business, then I can begin to concentrate on something else. And that something else could be another business, it could be travelling, properties, investing or anything.

Doing what I want, when I want.

I want to be at this stage in my business career by 50. I want to retire from that by 55.

These goals aren't just physical goals they become mental goals. And by establishing these dates then we can reverse engineer our plan to execute on time. We'll begin to put plans in motion now so that we can do what we want, when we want.

But from my present perspective I am beginning a slow drawback process. One that will see me take baby steps away from the day to day operation of my business. My plan, like so many others in my position, is to begin just working on my business, rather than in my business. And there's a big difference.

My problem is simply trying to adapt. I feel guilty for not being in the trenches. I feel guilty for not being the first one there and the last to leave. It's almost like it's my duty but that's only because it's all I've ever known.

Yet work is changing, it's adapting and I have to learn to change with it otherwise I won’t hit my marks and I’ll miss my goals.

Project 366 / 243 - Hatred, jealousy and where we're going wrong

There's a lot of animosity around. There's a lot of hate around and there's a lot of jealously around. The only reason I can think of why this is is because people are focussing more on other people than they are themselves.

And you know what? It's just a complete waste of time.

Why waste your time getting angry or frustrated at someone? Chances are you aren't even appearing on their radar, or if you are then you don't picture in their thoughts. If you realised that sooner then you could quite easily move on and stop wasting your time.

Spend physical and emotional time with people that build you up, not tear you down. Fight for what you want, not what someone else has got. And believe in yourself, not someone else.

The problem is we don't. We let ourselves get wound up by other people's actions, we suffer intolerable road rage when someone cuts us up, we hate our neighbour, we want to beat our imaginary competition and we want to be seen as the best, by everyone, all the time.

The human race is flawed. We build bombs to kill ourselves, fight wars over beliefs and build each other up just to tear each other down. And we don't learn. We know what is bad yet we actively seek it out, pushing, smoking, injecting and sniffing drugs that we know will kill us - and for what? To experience a delusion?

Forget the mirror and the razor blade, just take a good hard look in the mirror instead. Are you really the type of person who you thought you would turn out to be?

Project 366 / 242 - Fast, slow and balance

Do you live life fast or slow? Are you so focussed that it's almost as if you're wearing blinkers or do you take in the sights?

There's an agreement for both. Why sit there not living life? The majority of the population are members of the couch potato brigade, happily sitting life out on the sidelines, watching other people living their dreams from the comfort of the sofa but only being inspired to watch even more. They don't feel able to do anything about it due to the limitations that they place on themselves;

• There's no way I could do that.
• I haven't got time.
• I could't afford it.
• Could you see me doing that?

Negative.. negative.. negative. Can't, couldn't, wouldn't, shan't. These are the people who won't open their eyes to the possibilities of life and who can't see the wood for the trees. Beauty and opportunity is literally all around us, you just need to open your eyes.

But doesn't being too focussed mean that you're also missing out? To be successful in something normally means driving and striving and sacrifice. But when is enough enough? Is it when you reach a point of satisfaction? But are you ever satisfied?

I'm constantly battling between the two, trying to find a balanced life of striving for greater things, providing long terms financial stability for my family whilst not sacrificing time with the very people that I'm trying to protect. It's difficult; I enjoy my work, I enjoy my success, I enjoy pushing myself and I enjoy providing. But I also crave my time with my wife and kids.

Time is all too fleeting and when it comes down to it, we all have to make a choice.

Project 366 / 241 - Inside out, the pendulum and family

Inside Out is a Pixar film storytelling emotions played out by characters inside your head. It's a clever film which explores the conflicts of emotions that we all go through as we grow up and how something as simple as moving house can disrupt the equilibrium.

Of course our main character, Riley, is a pubescent which only adds to the emotional rollercoaster. In the end love, family and communication win the day and they all live happily ever after, even if only for the moment.

It's interesting as a parent to watch your kids enjoy the film. Reece, who is now 9, has already started to show his varying mood swings. Whether this is his age, a faze, the fact that he's a bit spoilt or hormones, we're not sure. But I wonder what he thinks and how he feels seeing a Pixar interpretation of emotions. But after watching the film this morning he asked "what's puberty?"

Gem's answer was slightly different than mine. Her's was "it's when you get even more moody than you get now" which only goes to make him moody. Mine was "it's when you go from being a child to an adult". Both are technically correct but I preferred mine, even if it was only because it was received better.

Hormones - they've got a lot to answer for. Gem is still very hormonal every month and has to work hard to keep herself in check. It should be no surprise then if some of this carries over to the kids.

Those teenage years mark the journey of adulthood, where boundaries are pushed and the differences in generations are potentially exposed. The differences when I was growing up were severe. My parents had their own agenda and because I didn't follow their chosen path then I became extradited. They didn't understand me, they didn't support me and they didn't believe in me. I became the black horse and was simply a disappointment. We fell out and the blame fell on my shoulders. It's still mentioned now, what a nightmare I was, how hard it was, all forgetting the fact that I didn't live at home from the age of something like 7.

My sister and I call their attitude towards us as the "Pendulum of Favour" as literally neither sibling can be in favour at the same time. In the immortal words of The Highlander "There Can Be Only One", and so it is. When we were teenagers my sister was the golden child, almost unable to do no wrong and I was ostracised. After she got divorced the pendulum began to swing towards me where it has rested for quite some time.

In Gem's family her brother, Adam, has always been the golden child, no matter what he's done. When her parents were first trying for a baby they were desperate for a son. Back then her Dad was a professional footballer and the media wanted an heir. When Gem was born the headlines read "Better luck next time". Wow, what a welcome.

When he was born, Adam became the apple of his parents eye. Often being overly spoilt at the cost of his older sister. At 16 he went out to work and over the next 16 years has been done for money laundering; has been hooked on drink, drugs and women; he's a compulsive liar; has begged, borrowed and stolen money; is totally unreliable and skint and has fathered 4 children by 3 different women, none of which he is still with.

Yet his parents still think that the sun shines out of his arse, despite him treating them like dirt.

Gem, on the other hand has turned out the opposite. She's honest, loving, successful, popular and true. She's an incredible mother who is dedicating her life to raising 2 amazing children. Her parents never have to worry about her and yet she is the first person they will let down. Yet if she points any of this out then she's labelled as jealous.

They say that history has a habit of repeating itself and that if you want to be able to tell the future then all you need to do is look at the past. It's just down to us now to learn from the past and to buck the trend that could be the future.

We are different and we're determined to stay that way.

Project 366 / 240 - Money, debt and assets

It's very easy to get accustomed to a certain standard of living and even easier to get totally carried away with living beyond your means.

The majority of people, and I mean the majority, live just beyond their means. Meaning they are spending just a bit more than they can afford. It feels like keeping up with the Joneses in this materialistic world has never been more rife.

Debt is a global problem but weirdly makes the world go round. If we don't spend, the UK economy slows, the global economy suffers and our earning capacity reduces. If we spend we tend to spend just a bit more than we earn and take out loans to cover our debt. As long as we don't default on our repayments this our credit rating improves and we get offered bigger and bigger loans. If we don't get any loans because we're careful with our money then it makes it difficult to get credit (like a mortgage) because we have a low credit scoring.

It's all just a bit backwards.

I've 3 friends who have recently managed to finally pay off their mortgages. You'd imagine that there would have been some big celebration, some ticker-tape parade and some massive sense of relief as the burden of debt was removed. But no, all 3 of them said it was a bit of an anti-climax. Yes they were a bit better off than they were but nothing which was changing their lives. In fact they all said that the money they'd been spending on their mortgage payment had already been re-allocated to something else. Their standard of living had marginally improved which had consequently absorbed the extra money.

I've got 3 mortgages - 2 at work and 1 at home and I am pushing hard to pay off the business ones especially. When I took out the last one I came home to my wife who had already opened a bottle of wine to celebrate the industrial purchase. I agreed that it was fantastic - we'd worked so hard to get to that point. But as we sipped the wine I said "but you have to realise something darling, we're now over half a million in debt".

For the moment we're asset rich but cash poor.

Project 366 / 239 - Sacrifice, dedication, talent and self promotion

Do you ever stop to think how the people, probably more the famous ones than not, but the people that you know and look up to have come to get there?

One seems to think that these things just happened. That the Beckhams, the Coldplays, the Dwayne Johnsons of this world just popped out of nowhere and in the lucky throw of a dice just made it. But the truth is so so far from that.

Sacrifice, dedication, talent and self promotion.

Sacrifice - that's giving up those lie-ins, those fast food feasts, those party nights, those game-of-thrones-athons.

Dedication - that's practicing and honing your skill, that's Beckham kicking over 10,000 free kicks in just practice, that's practicing with a discipline to achieve an accuracy that other players wouldn't care about, that's carrying on when everyone else it taking a break.

Talent - that's having self awareness, that's knowing what you are good at and going all in on that, that's realising one's self worth and what you can offer better than the next man or woman.

Self promotion - that's believing in yourself, that's forgetting what everyone else thinks, that's putting in the hours after practice to make sure that everyone knows how great you are.

I've been a big fan of The Rock for long time. From a movie standpoint I think it was from "Welcome to the Jungle" or "The Rundown" as it was known in some countries. At the beginning of the film he walks into a nightclub and passes Arnold who says "have fun". Many an action fan saw that as a passing of a torch. Time showed how true that was.

Anyway that film and the chemistry and comedy he had, especially in the outtakes, with Seann William Scott was hysterical. If you get a chance to watch the DVD extras then do, they are hilarious.

That was 2003, some 13 years ago. I'd say that Mr Johnson is more charismatic and more entertaining than ever. His social media feeds range from inspiring, to touching to entertaining. And to think, this was was a guy, at his lowest point, only had $7 left to his name. Now he's literally the highest paid actor in the world, last year earning over $65m alone. Yet with his attitude, we all still love him.

So no, no one just turns up and wins. They all sacrificed a lot, dedicated everything, were hugely talented and worked tirelessly on self promotion to make sure that they appeared on your radar. It was no fluke.

Project 366 / 238 - School holidays, then and now

The kids have got one more week of their summer school holiday left and then that's it - back to school. It only seems like yesterday that they were breaking up for their 8 week holiday, it's gone that fast.

All credit to my wife. She meticulously plans the summer holidays weeks and months in advance so they've got something on at least 4 days out of 7, plus then we try and fit in an actual holiday as a family somewhere. I'm not saying that the kids go back to school exhausted but certainly for a rest.

From memory my childhood was the polar opposite. My sister and I would break up from school and be whisked away for a driving holiday. One year we went to France to tour vineyards, we sampled wine and ate cheese. Sounds great until you realise that I was probably only 11. Nothing was booked so as I was learning French I had to get us into every hotel, B&B and hostel every night.

We drove a minimum of 100+ miles per day and spent 2 weeks in the car. The only relief was when we checked into a hotel in Dijon and they had a swimming pool. It wasn't more than a hole in the ground but we loved it. But that was the only break, the only pleasure and the only thing we had for ourselves.

Another year my sister was learning German so we had to repeat the same B&B/vineyard experience but this time in Germany (obviously). The only respite for me this time was being shown round a vineyard by a topless woman. My Dad and I could have stayed there a while longer but my Mum had other ideas, probably dragging my Dad away by the tongue.

The rest of our school holidays was spent entertaining ourselves. Our Mum recently admitted that she doesn't remember ever playing with us. We lived miles away from any friends so my sister and I spent literally weeks at a time going on mammoth bike rides around the neighbourhood. When you read those You know you grew up in the 80's if... posts just believe me that they are all true. We really did leave the house in the morning and not come back until tea time. We really did play with axes, ate pigs trotters, had countless bonfires and were surrounded constantly by a chain-smoking nation.

No, our kids have got it good. I'm not in the slightest bit jealous of them but instead proud that between Gem and I we're giving them the childhood that we would have wanted and that they deserve.

Project 366 / 237 - Business, customers and happiness

Business can be tough. And I'm not just talking about growing sales, or getting paid, or cash-flow, or red tape, or staff, or any of the 101 things that are sent to thwart and unhinge us on a daily basis but more to do with customer satisfaction.

Keeping customers happy.

I believe the route of most peoples unhappiness is themselves. They are uneducated so they lack the knowledge to resolve their problems. Plus they have no confidence so are unable to motivate themselves to improve. That's why the "download my £49 white paper to guarantee success" or "buy my £99 self-help course to fast track you to a better life" style gimmicks accrue such revenue. People are desperate not to be unhappy. People are scrabbling around for a quick fix.

But when it comes to customers it can be a very fine line between standing your ground and gaining respect and throwing in the towel, saying what you want to say and losing a client. I had a situation like that today and like a idiotic pro I kept my cool, bit my tongue and kept a client. So why am I not happy?

Is the customer always right even when they are fundamentally wrong?

I read a quote the other day that said "the customer with a Facebook account holding a smartphone is absolutely positively right." And that's half the problem. We're all too scared of either standing up for ourselves or sacking a client because of the potential viral repercussions.

A business lives, breathes and survives on having paying customers. Without them we're dead. But if they are unhappy and their unhappiness is due to their lack of education then is that our responsibility?

We're spending more time than ever in educating our clients, primarily via social media, blog posts and e-mail newsletters. But if they're not reading or engaging then who is at fault? If the information is there and presented at their fingertips then who's fault is it that they are not educating themselves? Do we blame the teacher when we fail the exam?

I guess all this comes down to who needs who. Do we bring more value to them than they do to us? I'd say 100% yes. But I want everyone to be happy, I'm trying to keep everyone happy.

Yes, everyone happy all the time and safely wrapped up in my ideal world. Sounds good doesn't it...

Project 366 / 236 - Love, history and a story

What is love?

That’s a question that’s been asked in so many ways by probably everyone that has ever lived since the dawn of time. The feeling of loving and being loved is like no other in the world ever. Love crosses borders, transcends gender and bridges gaps throughout communities and races like nothing else in the world. People have been empowered, accomplished great feats and survived impossible odds, all in the name of love.

In the name of love

True love, unlike our infatuistic teenage fumblings, is something to treasure, something to nurture and something to protect. Mutual love, where two people share the same passion and love for each other, feels to me to be a once in a lifetime chance. You don’t mess with that.

When I fall in love

I fell in love with my wife the first moment I set eyes on her. She was 17 and I was a very shy 26. She came to work at the head office of the company I worked for and I just so happened to be sitting in the company reception waiting for a meeting when she arrived for her interview. It was almost like a movie — everything went in slow motion, her hair flicked in the breeze, her body rose as she breathed and the air filled with the most beautiful aroma.

Love is all around

OK so maybe a bit of poetic license but I, despite being engaged to another woman, was taken — hook, line and sinker.

To my delight she got the job and so I would look out for her at every head office visit. We’d catch each others gaze and just hold it for those few seconds longer than normal. I was so in love it hurt. But not as much as when she left. I’d missed the boat, not had chance to declare my undying love. In fact not having ever plucked up the courage to say anything… ever.

The power of love

After a few head office visits I realised that her absence wasn’t a holiday, but that she’d left. I was literally gutted and heartbroken and felt that I'd never see her again. Out of defiance and denial I decided to marry my fiancee and just try and get on with my life, so that’s what I did. That was the year 1999.

Saving all my love for you

And then, mid 2000 I received a phone call… “hi it’s Gemma, I don’t know if you remember me…”. The angels sang, the doves flew and my heart blossomed. We both did almost everything we could over the next 6 months to stop the inevitable but what was meant to be was meant to be. By the end of the year I was getting divorced and she had split from her fiance and we were together. It was a tough time for us all but everything was always going to be worth it.

Kiss from a rose

We survived 2–3 years before we split up. The relationship was just lop-sided. I wanted her to want me rather than need me but she needed to grow up and gain her independence. It took 1–2 years of going to-and-fro for that to happen before we got back together. But when we did it was back on very equal terms.

How deep is your love

Sometimes we all just need to grow up.
Sometimes we all just need to understand our own worth.
Sometimes we all just need to be a bit more confident.
Sometimes we all just need to be a bit more comfortable in our own skin.
Sometimes we all just need to just believe in ourselves.

My love

We got married 10 years ago and since then we’ve had 2 amazing children and I’ve lost a business. We could have lost everything but as a unit we’ve restarted and become bigger and stronger than ever. It’s been the best 10 years of my life.

The Beatles were right - "All you need is love".

Project 366 / 235 - Consuming media, burgers and action

"Stop consuming so much shit media content that you know brings no benefit."

That was one of my many scribbles that I noted and kept on my iPhone some time ago. It was probably something I heard or read somewhere but I've kept it as it resonates with me every time I read it.

It's true that we are bombarded by information on a constant basis nowadays. You can't turn for information and smart devices are only making the consumption of it even more unavoidable. But what brings value and what is classed as bring a complete waste of time?

Media content comes in many forms: TV, radio, papers, magazines, billboards, digital media and social media. We read, watch, see or look at at least one of those every single day of our lives. Trash media is easy to spot a mile off - the reality TV shows, the game shows, the kitten YouTube videos, the mindless camera rolls uploaded to Facebook every second of the day and so on and so on.

But we all need an outlet. We all need to consume a trashy burger to know what a good steak tastes like. There's no good without bad, no yin without yang. So I understand the need to unplug every now and again to consume some trash TV.

But what I think a lot of people are guilty of is over planning. They watch numerous self-help videos, guru talks, workout videos and inspirational montages. They make great plans, talk a great talk and try and absorb as much knowledge as they can whilst failing to do the one thing that will teach them best of all — execution.

By far the greatest lesson you can learn is in the doing. It's only by doing something that you have the opportunity to find out whether it works or not. That's called learning. I mean how many white papers do you need to download, how many videos do you need to watch, how many seminars do you need to attend and how many books do you need to read?

Go out and do it - that'll teach you everything that you need to start. If once you've started you find you need some help then at least you'll be able to fine tune what you need to consume to learn.

Project 366 / 234 - London, competition and landing

"Dad, how many people live in London? Is it like 1000 or something?"

That was one of the many questions that Reece asked me today on a day trip to the city.

"No I think it's a few more than that, millions actually, it's a very densely populated city".

Actually the figure, as of 2015 is more like 8.674 million. Now that's a lot of people and when you think of that volume of people and the number that are trying to "make it" or be hugely successful in their chosen field, or famous, or just to be someone it's actually quite daunting.

Daunting in as much that there's huge competition out there. Just because you work hard, just because you've got talent, just because you're young... all the "just because's" in the world won't guarantee anything. You'll need a huge portion of luck along the way in the way of timing, plus being at the right place at the right time, plus the market will be on high demand for what you offer and you'll have to have the right charisma to pull it all off.

The good news is that you'll only need to make a profit of £1 from one eighth of the Londoners alone to hit that prize million.

Legacy becomes a very prominent word as you get older. Yes we all want to be millionaires but the legacy that we leave becomes far more important. As Gary Vaynerchuk said "how you make your money is more important than how much money you make." Meaning making honest money, doing good by people and being faithful and supportive leaves a far more honourable legacy.

But that's easy to say when you've made it. It's easy to say that money doesn't matter, that it doesn't make you happy and that you should give up everything to pursue your dream. It's like a lottery winner who gambled all their money and sold everything they had to play the lottery. They'll tell you that's what you should do because it worked out for them.

Apparently the amount you need to earn to be classed as rich is something like £90k p/a. Bearing this in mind I think most people need to re-position their goals slightly. Not many people own a business which makes £1m. In fact the majority live hand-to-mouth. Certainly aim high but don't feel like a failure if you fall short. As they say, "Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars".

Project 366 / 233 - Being fit, health and shakes

We all want to be fit. We all want to look good and we all want to feel proud of ourselves. But the missing ingredient which a lot of people overlook is being healthy.

The way we look is, in the greater scheme of things, fleeting. Dropping body fat, gaining muscle, getting a six pack - these are actually reasonably easy things to achieve, but maintaining them over a long period of time isn't. They take a huge amount of discipline, sacrifice and maintenance and for what? Admiring glances?

The number of young guys down the gym who train for just 4 months of the year to attain some beach-body physique tells you everything that you need to know. They don't care about health they only care about how they look. Why do you think that there has been a massive upsurge in the use of anabolic steroids over the last decade? Short term gains - that's all they're after.

We need to be thinking longer term. We need to thinking about health.

But the majority of youngsters aren't concerned about health - why would they when their bodies are at their prime, are healthy and seemingly invincible? Understanding the long term effects are key and that all begins with nutrition.

Nothing substitutes real and fresh nutritional food - nothing. I love my food but wouldn't we all like to be able to just take a pill which gives us everything that the body needs? Yes you can take meal replacement powers and drinks. Short term these things work, I've seen some amazing transformations by people on them but literally everyone I know who has been on these meal replacement powders has had longer term problems. Either their weight ballooning when coming off them or further health problems when staying on them.

It's my belief that if you don't use parts of your body, both inside and out then they won't work as effectively. If you stop using your legs they'll wither and become too weak to use. If you stop using one arm then its muscles too will fade to nothing. It's the same for your insides. If you stop utilising your internal organs then they too will become weak. I think that is one of the reasons why people on these meal replacement powders have longer term problems. On the powders then their digestive system doesn't have to work as hard, after all the food they are eating doesn't have to be broken down like real food would need to be. When they eventually come off these powders then the body goes into shock and is unable to cope with the sudden influx of real food and so stores the food as fat.

And that's just one example. Yes meal replacement powders have a place. After all it's certainly better for you to be taking one and losing weight than it is to be obese and eating unhealthy foods high in saturated fat. No argument there. And I know that people need something to believe in, they need something to be their saviour. But I think that's as far as it goes.

Good clean fresh nutritional food and regular exercise - how about that?

Project 366 / 232 - Growing up, getting older and doing it

We're all growing up. We're all getting older. It's just that different times of our lives this progression and development is more obvious than others.

The children for example - they're growing at such a pace. Our trip this last week to Center Parcs is a complete contrast to the one we had at the same place just 8 months ago. Some of the things that Lincoln did this year we could only have dreamed him doing at Christmas, such are the massive changes in his confidence and ability.

But this is echoed everywhere, we just don't see it. The elite athletes at the current Olympics in Rio feel like they will be around forever, such is their impact on the sports. For example Usain Bolt, who completely wipes the floor with every other competitor over 100m and 200m and has done ever since he burst onto the Olympic scene back in 2008 at the Bejing Olympics. He's 29 now and this is his last Olympics. Last night he won the 200m easily but wasn't happy as he didn't break his own world record. His reason? Because he's getting old.

And we all are. When we see people in the spotlight daily they don't seem to change. But take them off our horizon then all of a sudden we notice big changes. And if we notice big changes in our children when we see them every day then others must be amazed by their growth. But just as they are growing up so are we, we're getting older and slowly making way for the new generation.

It's difficult to quite believe your age sometimes. Only yesterday we were 20 or 30, or 40 and all of a sudden you're pushing towards 50. And then you begin remembering your own parents at the age that you are now and realise how quickly that time has gone. There really isn't time to hesitate, or to wait.

You'll never have enough money, you'll never be ready and it'll never be the right time. Do it, do it now.

Project 366 / 231 - Adrenaline, dopamine and laughing

We are alive... aren't we? Well if that's the case and we know it then what's with the constant need to remind ourselves of it? What's missing in our lives to drive us to pursue potential life threatening activities?

I've done 2 parachute jumps and an abseil down the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth. But that's not all, what about the seemingly minor roller coasters, fairground rides and adrenaline activities that we are all drawn towards? The need to get the heart pumping, to be exhilarated and to feel alive is as intoxicating and addictive as the endorphins that are released. But why?

Well a connection has been found between emotion experiences which are not everyday and the massive release of neurotransmitters that happen when you face those drops into nothingness on a theme park ride. In these cases the body produces a large amount of natural chemical substances like dopamine, which tends to generate pleasurable feelings similar to those experienced when we drink alcohol, take stimulating drugs or have sex. So the new time you are on an adrenaline ride and are laughing almost uncontrollably then just know, it's the mixture of dopamine and adrenaline that your body has released.

I know that these activities are heavily regulated but accidents do happen and then we sit there wondering why. But extreme sports are on the rise, the need for speed and the quest for survival is on the increase. And it starts young. Just this week we've been on a family holiday and the kids (5 and 9) are constantly looking to experience the danger rides, whether it's the highest and fastest water park ride or some tree top climbing activity, they are the first to sign up. And us parents follow them around with arms outstretched praying that they don't fall and worrying enough for everyone involved.

And what do we do tomorrow? We do it all again...

Project 366 / 230 - Technology, photography and progress

Isn't technology great. Well at least I think it is. But there's a distinct difference between it improving our lives and taking over our lives. Many of us embrace technology all the while we can control it and take it or leave it but the more you look around the more you realise that it has become part of our fabric, part of our society and part of our every day living.

So much of technology improves processes. Just tonight we were having dinner at Cafe Rouge and the waiter was taking our orders at the table on an electronic device. Literally as soon as we'd ordered our selection was beamed to the kitchen and was being prepared. No more scraps of paper, no more trying to remember and no more delays. This was advancement at its most convenient. It's not putting anyone out of a job and it's not disrupting the equilibrium.

On the other end of the scale there are the people in the restaurant who are all on their phones. Why are you checking into Facebook when you should be paying attention to the family who are right in front of you? Why do people feel the need to interact with others or show the world what you are doing when you should be just enjoying the moment?

We all like to capture the moment. After all photography was first invented in the 1800's (it didn't come into the general public affordable realm for another 100 or so years) and has greatly accelerated since the turn of the century with digital photography. But the want to share your every moment has blown out of all proportion.

How many times do you log on to Facebook and see that one of your "friends" has just uploaded not 1 or 2 but 20, 30 or 50+ photos? Literally everything from their camera roll, warts and all. As such many of the photos are duplicates of the same image. Tell me - who really wants to see that? I'm always shocked and more often than not pissed off by it.

But I digress. Technology can be a very powerful tool. Sadly the majority of technology that is developed is done so to put someone out of work. I would moan about that too but it's just a sad fact of life and basically progression so we have to accept it and evolve. There are more of us on the planet than ever and the machines are doing more and more of our jobs and it's not them that's doing it to us but ourselves.

This, my friends, is progress. Adapt to survive, or die.

Project 366 / 229 - Earth, humans and scars

We're currently having a weeks holiday at Centre Parcs in Woburn. It's a dwelling within a forest with activities and nature all around. As I stare out of the window I begin to realise that the mark we are making, as humans, is just a scar on our beautiful planet.

And within the vastness of time, our fleeting visit will be completely erased in a blink of an eye. Nature will always win, the planet will always heal itself. Whether we make it inhabitable or not is more the question.

There was a program on TV a few years ago which provided a scientific insight as to what would happen to our planet if all the humans disappeared tomorrow. It showed just how quickly nature would reagin control and just how quickly our environment would be taken over. Without human intervention flood defences would fail, modern buildings (which aren't built to last) would crumble and fall and many of the 400 nuclear power plants would fail causing a rolling blanket of nuclear explosions across the world.

• After 10,000 years the only thing that would be left would be a few stone structures.
• After 50 million years all the only trace of our civilisation will be the plastic bottles and pieces of broken glass.
• After 100 million years all those will be gone.
• After this time if there is a new rational species they may not even notice that there was another species before them.

So you see, we're not really destroying our planet at all, we're just destroying our chance of being able to live on it. So do as Jerry Springfield says and "Take care of yourself, and each other".

Project 366 / 228 - Life, stages and appreciation

There are many stages in our life and if we are really clever we can harness the power of each of them. Yet the problem is that we're constantly living in anticipation of the next stage, not relishing, appreciating and taking advantage of the one we're at.

Our parents all tell us that our school days are the best days of our lives. Whilst I believe some of this is true (the camaraderie, the copious volume of friends, the laughing and the parties), I think a lot of it is nostalgic. Looking back were only really remembering the good times, whilst quickly and easily forgetting the endless work, the mindless hours spent trying to fill time, the bulling and quintessential starvation.

In our 20's we have the perfect opportunity of doing exactly what we want. Be that travelling the world, living on a sofa, eating literally anything, sleeping very little and creating endlessly. It really is a golden era of zero responsibility that most of us let pass by as we're stuck in the machine. The machine that tells us that we're grown up, that we should be responsible and that we should get a job.

Most of us in our 30's start a family and that's where everything changes. Where our priorities change and shit gets serious. Those Friday and Saturday all nighters are replaced by warming milk and changing nappies. It's a refreshing change yet one that takes a bit of time to adapt to. If, like me, you tried to do both you quickly being to realise that you can't, or shouldn't to say the least.

The 30's are great but potentially a tough time. There's a big weight of expectation and probably unnecessarily so. Please, if that''s where you're at then understand, there's still plenty of time.

In your 40's life becomes rudimentally simpler. Despite what you think in your 20's, your 40's is where it's at. You're old enough for people to listen and respect you yet you're still young enough to still do all the things that you really want to do. And I'm not talking about getting down in the nightclub, those days are long gone.

It's only in your 40's that you begin to realise the beauty and opportunity of youth. And when you do you almost become a philosopher to those younger that you, desperately trying to get them to absorb the knowledge of opportunity that they have. But they know better.

And so the merry-go-round continues.

Project 366 / 227 - Power, success and choice

There's a distinct lack of realisation in people. They don't understand that everything that they want, everything that they desire and everything that they dream about is within their power.

That £1m house?
That dream car?
That lifestyle?
The money?

It's all within your power. But there's a catch and it's called sacrifice. How much do you want these things? No, really how much to you want them? Are you willing to put in the time, the work and the hustle? Are you happy to forgo everything to achieve your dream?

Sacrifice for success. But even that's not guaranteed, it just increases the odds in your favour. And how much time are you willing to invest? These are all factors and pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that you have to accept in order to position yourself for success.

Forgetting celebrity culture, I can guarantee you that all the big earners, be they musicians, athletes, sports people or business leaders have all made tremendous sacrifices in their lives. They've put in the minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and years of work, hustle, training and sacrifice to achieve greatness.

Muhammad Ali once said "I hated every minute of training, but I said "Don't quit, suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion"". This is the mentality you must adopt. Don't quit, dig deep, make those sacrifices, use your time, earn your stripes and make it work.

Everything that you want is within your power. If you're not happy then change what you're doing. If you don't like where you live then move. Can't afford it? Rubbish - work harder, work longer, adapt and adopt to make change. Things take time, be patient.

And don't say "oh it's alright for you". That's just a sign of jealousy and you're jealous because you haven't yet understood that they have been willing to make the sacrifices where you haven't.

Mediocre is easy.
Great is hard.

It's your choice.

Project 366 / 226 - Rubbish, living and dumping

I'm always fascinated by where people live and how they live. It interests me how people end up living where they do and why. From alongside main roads, to backing onto railways, from housing estates to remote rural locations - it's interesting to understand why people choose to live where they do.

But it's so much more than that, it's they way in which they decide to live. I was walking back from work earlier and noticed such contrasting homes. One neat and tidy, the next like a rubbish dump. One decaying and the next door a new build. Such differences. Some people obviously take great pride in their homes whilst others obviously don't.

Roads are littered with old newspapers, a fly-tipped rusty old barbeque, empty beer cans, smashed beer bottles, a bicycle wheel - all items that were once new and purchased with purpose, all now resigned to the gutter, discarded like so much in our disposable society.

My business resides on a private business park. The benefits are that we have to take responsibility for our environment. The council, despite charging extortionate council tax fees, don't venture onto our estate. Hell we even have to pay a 3rd party to collect our refuse. So we've set up a management company and all pay a fee per month which pays to maintain the estate. It works and works well.

I've often thought that residential roads could adopt a similar approach. Maybe then people would take a bit more pride in where they live. We all sell and buy houses based on what we can afford and the area in which we want to live. Yet we play the lottery with our neighbours, never knowing quite who we're going to be lumped next door to.

But the problem, just like on our private business park, is that there is always a percentage of people who just don't want to get involved and that leads to resentment. Why should I run around tidying up if I'm the only one? Why should you constantly benefit for free from me liking the place clean and tidy? Charge and you'll face a revolution, don't charge and they'll be laughing behind your back.

Project 366 / 225 - Work, life and balance

Work / Life balance. Now there's a thing. And it's a very difficult things to master. Work too hard and you'll be criticised. Don't work hard enough and, well you'll be criticised. You know, sometimes you just have to do you and screw the rest of them.

For me, well I'm trying to build something, I'm trying to lay a solid financial foundation for not only me and my family but their future families too. And this takes time and effort. No-one has really done this for me. Sure my Mum and Dad are jointly pretty well off but they've never given my sister or I any help. They even laid their future financial legacy down within a trust fund that we couldn't touch without consent of an external board. When I asked my Dad how this fund worked he said "it's like a light bulb, you can see it but you just can't touch it".

Great. I can't wait to see how that works out.

For me it's all about giving whilst you're alive. I believe that the pleasure of giving is in the reaction and appreciation of the receiver. So what's the point of leaving something for someone if you're not alive to see them enjoy it?

But I think that this work/life balance is just a ruse to guilt you into not striving so much. I enjoy my work, I enjoy the hours and I enjoy the process of making money, helping people and creating something. But surely that has to be the standard remit if you're a business owner? And is this a bad thing? I don't think so. I get the kids up in the morning, I do the school run, I put them to bed at night and I'm with them every weekend. And by with them I don't mean I'm in the same room or in the same house but on my phone or iPad or laptop, I'm with them 100% and giving them my full attention.

There's no point in saying you have a good work/life balance if when you are at home all you are doing is ignoring your kids and being on Facebook or watching TV.

Before I was married and had children I'd work 12+ hour days and that was when I was working for someone else. If I was single now I'd still be working the same if not more, plus probably weekends too, such is my desire to succeed.

I want my legacy to be that I created stability. I don't think many people really care about me that much, but if I can create a financially stable future for my family and the next generation then I think I will have succeeded.

Project 366 / 224 - Talking, communication and parents

Historically there seems to be an issue with parents talking and telling those close to them what they really think and really feel. Our great grandparents didn't communicate with our grandparents which, in turn meant that they didn't really talk to our parents. If we're lucky our parents broke the mould but if we were unlucky, like my sister and I, the trait continued.

I'm guessing that each generation thinks it's one better than the last and ours is no different. But if each generation feels that then why is it that only ours feel like it is making real changes?

My mother pent up a lot of animosity towards her father over his life but decided to wait until he was suffering with senile dementia and alzheimer's before plucking up the courage to tell him how she felt. She also told me that she'd tell my father what she really thought about him when he got to the same stage.

Why? Why wait? Why not tell that person what you're thinking, what you're feeling? So you're going to just sit there and suffer in silence of the rest of your life?

My Dad doesn't communicate at all. It pains him to talk and as a result he's one of the hardest people to talk to. He says that he finds it difficult to open up and to express his feelings. Well whatever happened to just trying?

Yet our parents find it incredibly easy to talk to everyone else. To tell all their friends how proud they are of you, to gloat over your successes and to show off. Yet this is never communicated directly to you. Instead you're chastised, criticised and spoken to like you're still a child.

All we can do with our generation is to bring our children up differently. To bring them up how we would have liked to have been brought up. That's talking to them, praising them, telling them that we love them, encouraging them, cuddling them, playing with them and including them in everything that we do.

Project 366 / 223 - Old friends, traits and our core

We're all full of contradictions and I'm no exception. Yesterday I was talking about how we're constantly changing and evolving and how our beliefs and priorities change as we get older. Now I still believe that 100% but I also feel that there is a big part of us that remains the same. And this is a part that is carved out very early on in our lives.

A number of years ago thanks to (the positive side of) Facebook I got back in contact with some of the guys that I went to school with between the ages of 7-13. We were all full boarders so lived with each other at school for weeks on end. Despite this and because of this it made for an incredibly happy time. At 13 we all went our separate ways and in general never expected to see each other again. That was 1984.

Fast forward 23 years and we got back in contact via Facebook and arranged to meet for a Christmas drink up in London. It was an insanely enjoyable evening, full of laughter, reminiscing, nostalgia and catching up and we're repeated the get together nearly every year since.

Now what I've noticed is that despite the fact that we're all that much older (after all a quarter of a century has passed) we're all inherently the same. We still have the same outlook, the same attitude, the same ethics, hell we even still look much as we did back then (admittedly minus a follicle or two for some of us).

So I look to my kids. Reece especially who is 9 and realise how this age and this period time is so important. The groundwork that we lay down now is going to shape who he is for the rest of his life. Now I've always said that about the kids ever since they were born, that they wouldn't necessarily remember much up to 5 years old but that what we were doing and how we were bringing them up day in and day out would shape their personality. But I just feel that now is the most important time of all.

So whilst we do change and mature over the years I believe that our core being remains much the same.

Project 366 / 222 - Letters, beliefs and what is important

If you read online blogs or medium articles then you can't help but have noticed the numerous people writing articles entitled "My letter to my 20 year old self". In essence they are what you would tell your younger self if you had the chance. That perhaps everything would be alright, that you would find love, that your idea was worth the struggle or that you really wouldn't know yourself until you'd had your children.

It's a powerful concept and interesting to read the various articles that have been written. There seems to be the recurring theme of patience though. That life isn't a sprint, it's a marathon. That you should celebrate the journey and the numerous, almost countless micro-victories along the way. And that the only destination is the end and by then it's all too late.

But my concept is the reverse and something that you can actually do. My idea would be to write a letter to my 60 or 70 year old self explaining what I'm doing, how I'm feeling, where I am in my life right now and what I am trying to achieve. It almost becomes a time capsule, only to be opened at a specific date and time. The only stipulation is living that long.

We all change, day to day, week to week, month to month and year to year. We're not the same person that we were 10 years ago and we'll all be different 10 years from now. Our perception on life, our beliefs, our opinions and our aspirations change and evolve constantly.

Aside from family, the chances are what is important now will be less so in a few years. And other seemingly irrelevant things now will be everything then. Then there are friends, the majority of which come and go, with only a small handful staying the test of time. It's sad but you have to accept it and move on, just like they may have.

What I find interesting is meeting up with old friends and realising that everyone remembers everyone from time to time. Just as you fondly recall that friend from school, or those good times with some teenage friends, so do they. And more often than you think.

As you become older legacy becomes more important. Not what you did, not how much you made, not what you said but how you made people feel.

Maybe I'll write that letter to my 70 year old self and see if I can get something right after all.

Project 366 / 221 - Adversity, comfort and genius

I came across this saying earlier today by the Roman poet Horace and it really resonated with me;

"During adversity genius is revealed. During comfort it is concealed"

It really is true that greatness comes from adversity, when our backs are up against the wall, when it's sink or swim, fight or flight those are the times when we dig deepest and find our ultimate resolve.

You think you work hard? You can work harder. You think you work smart? You can work smarter. There's always more left in the tank than you think, it's your mind that tells you that it's empty.

Why do you think it is that when people are being successful they try something new, or try to expand, or take on more? I think you'll find that it's not out of monetary greed, it's to challenge themselves, to put themselves back in that zone of discomfort where they have to make it work and they have to prove themselves once again.

That is what life is all about - overcoming challenges. As a human race our greatest accomplishments have come from adversity so the next time you find yourself faced with a problem please realise it's actually an opportunity. It's only a problem if you think it is. Failure is only failure if you quit.

Project 366 / 220 - Family, appearances and reality

Does anyone have a normal family? Does such a thing actually exist? Or is that veil, so delicately draped over our rose tinted glasses, actually just a facade?

My family has always appeared different from everyone elses around me. Whilst everyone else seemed to have great parent/child relationships, ours was strained at best and a silent ignorance at worst. Over the years at times communication has become more of a sense of duty rather than a want or need, and that appears to be both ways. My Mum referred to my sister recently as "less of a daughter and more of just a person she knows down in Port Solent". This was the same mother who advised me when I was 18 not to have children "because they're not worth it".

I thought I was alone with this type of family and embraced my wife's family when I was first introduced. After all hers was a close-nit family who all appeared to not only openly love each other (my parents have never told me that they love me) but also support each other. There appeared to be excellent parent/child relationships where literally anything and everything could and was discussed.

Of course this is what was presented to me in the first few years. Now I know different. Now I know the inter-sibling bitching, the favouritism, the screaming, the arguing, the lying etc... Nearly all of them appear either mad, insane or in a complete other world of denial.

And then there are our friends. Of course we don't know all their families but some of them we do and they are all dysfunctional. Our favourite family appeared almost perfect. Great kids, loving Mum and Dad with amazing parent/child relationships. We'd always looked at them and hoped that we too would have that kind of family unit with our kids when they were older. Well the daughter got married last year and within 2 weeks her father left her mum for seemingly no reason apart from he'd had enough of their life together. The result is another shattered family.

So I look to my own and hope and pray that we can break the mould. That we can be the first family to be happy together without judgement, without animosity and without any anger. I think a lot of this  frustration stems from disappointment, after all we all have hopes and dreams for our children. But their lives are their lives and as long as they are good and honest enough (we're not all pure) then I guess what will be will be.

Project 366 / 219 - Talking, doing and posting

There's a massive difference between saying and doing. As they say, "Talk is cheap" because it is. Talking the talk is one thing, walking the walk is something quite different.

And we're all guilty of it. It's just some are more guilty than others. Yeah I'm going to do this, yeah you should do that. But do we heed our own advice? Do we stand by our own intentions?

Facebook, the worlds biggest comparison website there is, is teeming with it. Every man, woman and child spurts self help guru quotes in a vain attempt to try and convince their "friends" of something that they're not. And we all know it. They're not fooling anyone.

Recently there was a post about putting down your phone and giving your family, friends and life the attention instead. You know, like how it used to be not so long ago. Loads of my friends shared this, I'm assuming out of guilt for their own lives as they are the ones who should really heed this kind of advice as they are literally living every waking moment online.

I'm a very positive person but you won't catch me constantly posting positivity quotes online.
I'm a very active person but you won't catch me constantly posting how to get fit advice online.
I like to eat healthily but you wan't catch me constantly posting photos of my healthy food online.
I'm an amateur photographer but you won't catch me uploading my entire photo album online.

And why? Because I don't need to convince myself of who I am. I'm confident and comfortable in my own skin, my own beliefs and my own will power.

Project 366 / 218 - Independents, multi-nationals and the High Street

The high street used to be a vibrant place filled with lots of independent shops, boutiques, the odd cafe, book shops and restaurants. It used to be a place to go, to explore and to meet. Many an afternoon could be spent mooching, shopping and eating.

But today's high street is dead and the councils are wondering why. Well a quick glance at what is to offer will tell you everything that you need to know. Interesting shops and independents have been replaced with charity shops, estate agents, funeral directors, countless coffee shops and newsagents all lightly peppered with a handful of multi-nationals. The difference between one town and another ends up to be nothing more than the name.

Of course there are some exceptions to the rule. Local to us in Worthing there are the lanes in Brighton which are constantly buzzing with an independent atmosphere nostalgic of London's swinging sixties. In the other direction you have Chichester which, probably due to its affluence, affords many a independent boutique.

The main problem you have really stems from landlord greed. The rent on shops in our town of Worthing is astronomical and so can only be afforded by those aforementioned multinationals, subsidised charity shops and the non-tax paying coffee chains. The secondary problem is the cost of parking which is, ironically, literally driving people away. The third problem is the internet.

And then there are the retail parks with their free parking and all-you-need-under-one-roof. It's not difficult to see where it's all going so wrong for the high street.

I looked in to renting a retail unit a few years ago. It was one of those units the size of an out of town Boots so quite big. The unit had been vacant (and notably still is) for years, in fact ever since Curry's was bought out by PC World. The landlord was demanding £25k rent. Pretty decent if it was per year. The trouble was it was £25k PER MONTH. Oh and then there's council tax, electricity etc...

I'm not sure that I understand the theory behind this. Do these people prefer to have no income instead of dropping the price to attract a tenant? I'm sure if approached there would be a deal to be had but to me the initial asking price is enough to put most potential tenants off.

Project 366 / 217 - Excuses, being good and OCD

There comes a time in every daily bloggers life when they struggle. Struggle for idea, struggle for inspiration or, as it is for me today, for time. It's not the first time either. Many a time I've sat down at 11.45pm to furiously write a 300+ word post in time for the midnight deadline. Would anyone care if I missed it? Not a soul. Except one that is. Mine.

So I soldier on. No matter the day, no matter the occasion, no matter the location. Today's excuse (number two hundred and sixteen) is that I've been working exceptionally hard, the kids are down at my sisters for 48 hours so I've been out pretty much straight from work with my wife for a lovely meal and a bottle of wine. It's now gone 11pm.

So the topic of today is, without trying to sound like I'm blowing my own trumpet or anything, how to you find what you're really really good at and go all in on that when you're actually really good at everything?

One of my staff was complaining at me about another colleague who was't as quick as they were at a particular task. They were wondering why it was taking them so long when they were that much quicker. I found their frustration interesting. I brought this topic up (not the example) when we were all together and explained that we all had our strengths and that accuracy always trumped speed. What was it that Conor MacGregor said... "Precision beats power and timing beats speed".

Well in our game precision beats power and speed. I explained that my frustration was that I could do all their jobs quicker and better than any of them but that I had to allow everyone's strengths and personalities to shine through. It's hard though but if I'm going to be able to delegate successfully then I have to realise that no-one is going to do anything as well, or as quickly as me.

My staff may think I'm a little OCD as I like everything done just right and in particular way but in a service industry isn't that a strength? I always find it funny that one of the training courses I have to go on every few years has to do with putting dangerous or hazardous good onboard a passenger aircraft. The pass mark you have to hit is something like 75%. Yet any one of those errors within the remaining 25% could potentially bring down an aircraft but no-one will ever tell you where you went wrong.

Crazy huh? But don't worry, I passed my last exam with 100% so you're safe with me (see, I told you I was good!).

Project 366 / 216 - Earth, population and grandchildren

I know that the world is changing and changing at an alarming rate. Many of the changes are cycles, others however, are not. The impact that man, and his increasing footprint on the world, has on resources, on environment and on our habitat is strikingly alarming. And whilst there is a growing percentage of people who want to take care of where we live, there still is a massive proportion who simply don't give a damn.

In 1960, some 56 years ago, there were only 3.036 billion people in the world.

By 1970 there were 3.687 billion

By 1980 4.438 billion

By 1990 5.279 billion

By 2000 6.102 billion

By 2010 6.884

And today approximately 7.125 billion

Basically the population of the world doubles every 40 years if we are to believe simple maths then by 2040 there'll be over 12 billion people draining every drop of water, every fish, every animal and every plant in the world. The reality may be different but the trend is the same. Can Mother Earth cope?

It's a serious problem and it's something that our children and our grandchildren are going to have to find a solution for. Ultimately it comes down to resource and consumption. If we can find a way of increasing our resources or making our resources go further whilst reducing our consumption then we stand a chance.

I believe that the effects global warming are beyond our control. Yes man has accelerated the effects, yes our presence has contributed to the issue but did you really think that 7 billion people wouldn't have an impact? But the planet was warming anyway, the warming and cooling of the planet goes in cycles and we're just in the middle of another cycle. At some point the earth will go through another ice age and no doubt if the human race still exists we'll be blamed for that one too.

Fortunately at the moment we have technology on our side but I believe that is a double edged sword and that it will will either make or break us. Planet Earth will always survive, it'll repair itself over time, it's always the inhabitants that face extinction.

Project 366 / 215 - Dogs, cats and merry hell

We've recently brought in a new puppy. OK I say a new puppy, I don't know what I mean when I say "new", I mean you can hardly bring in an old puppy can you. But anyway, he's new to us. We rescued him from Spain and a probable short-lived life of pain and misery.

We've had a dog before - a beautiful black labrador called Murfey who was part of our family for 13 amazing years. Of course I say an amazing 13 years as like with everything else your memory plays tricks on you. You easily recall all the beautifully fun moments whilst conveniently erasing the not-so-fun moments.

Murfey was a spirited young pup and a 100% daddy's boy. The odd time Gem used to walk him she'd more often than not come home with just a lead and shout at me to "go and get your f**king dog". Murphy went everywhere with me and really was the perfect companion. But as a pup he ate the kitchen, chewed through a wall, fished food off the side (he ate a whole tray of frozen chips, a pâté still in it's wrapper and a whole loaf of bread to name but a few) and ended up in a police cell more than once.

Of course when he got older we'd look back and laugh at his puppy ways but it wasn't so much fun at the time. Of course now we've got another puppy so we're having a stark reminder of those times. Ziggy is a live-wire. He's a small dog with attitude and more than his fair share of little-man-syndrome. I actually feel sorry for the cats as their noses have been well and truly put out of joint. They just need to understand that all they have to do is stand still and swipe and he'll never come near them again. Instead at the moment all they choose to do is turn and run and that, to the young Zigzag is a whole heap of feline-fun.

We're considering a behaviourist, some puppy training and failing all that, capital punishment. Every now and again my wife and I sit sit in bed and fondly remember a time before animals, when life was peaceful, simple and less stressful. And then we look at each other and wonder what the hell we've done.

Project 366 / 214 - 3am voices, ability and experience

One of the things people like Chase Jarvis talks about is the 3am voice in your head telling you that you're not good enough, not fast enough and not working hard enough. I'm not sure I've ever really had that. Yes we all have concerns over our fate but I've never had any worries over my ability. I think that stems from the fact that I've never preached to be a so-called expert. Instead I've given advice when it's been asked of me.

I think knowledge comes with experience rather than textbooks. I never had the audacity to claim any expertise before I was 40 and my confidence only now comes from my experience. I'm young enough to be relevant and yet old enough to command some kind of attention and respect.

It helps to have been there and done that. It helps to have the life experiences. It helps to have been through the mill and to have come out the other side, better, bigger and stronger.

But I also realise that this current state of relevance has a shelf life. In our industry people like dealing with a mature and experienced businessman rather than old ones or wannabe young ones. You can't gain practical knowledge in the classroom and my clients are buying my experience just as much as my service. So many times I hear them say "in your experience what would you suggest about...".

If you're young you need to understand that you need to put in the work to earn the respect of your colleagues. I started from the bottom and learnt every role up the ladder inside out on my way to the top. This gives me leverage over my employees - they know that I've done that job and that I wouldn't ask them to do something that I haven't already done 1000 times myself.

And all that is why I don't wake up at 3am worrying about my ability.