Today is 3 weeks since I broke my wrist on Dartmoor, hiking solo to a secluded swimming spot. I believe that life is for living, and a broken arm is a small price to pay for a lifetime of outdoor adventure. Although painful, and having to work at reduced capacity, I have since felt moreContinue reading “Adventures”
Author Archives: Thierry_G
I asked 50 geospatial leaders about success. Here’s their advice
Over the past few weeks, I’ve been contacting leaders around the geospatial industry to find out what they believe it takes to be successful. This is to help inspire postgraduate students on a business and leadership training programme I’m delivering at two UK universities. So I asked ca. 50 leaders in my network one simpleContinue reading “I asked 50 geospatial leaders about success. Here’s their advice”
The magic of turning off the music
Last year, one of the most moving moments on British TV happened on celebrity talent show, Strictly Come Dancing. It’s not a show I normally watch but, like millions of others, I couldn’t help but feel moved. Rose Ayling-Ellis was the first deaf contestant on the show. How does a deaf person dance to musicContinue reading “The magic of turning off the music”
Age vs. Attitude
Two weeks ago, in Hawaii, Kelly Slater won the Billabong Pro Pipeline contest, one of the world’s top surfing events. He’s 50 years old. As a surfer myself, I can truly appreciate the magnitude of this achievement. It’s as if a pensioner had just won Wimbledon or climbed Everest. For context, Slater’s co-finalist was theContinue reading “Age vs. Attitude”
Sabbaticals
I notice more people taking sabbaticals from work. I also notice that some people feel guilty about it. Only this morning I spoke to someone who said her sabbatical is a “privilege” and her tone of voice sounded embarrassed. It’s true that not everyone can afford to take a sabbatical, but if you are inContinue reading “Sabbaticals”
New Year
I’ve never been a great fan of New Year’s resolutions. Half-way through January, I wonder how many people have already given up on theirs. Recently I came across these inspiring words by food writer, Thomasina Miers: “January is not a month for abstinence but for nourishment.” After the excesses of the holiday season, the temptationContinue reading “New Year”
On mentors, cows, and triangulation: Why do coaches have coaches?
Mentors can show up in the most unexpected places. In the first pandemic lockdown, I often walked to nearby fields and woods for my daily ration of fresh air. One day, a group of cows had gathered by the gate. As I made my way through them, the cows looked at me with their dazeContinue reading “On mentors, cows, and triangulation: Why do coaches have coaches?”
As a leader, your greatest power is to do nothing
Superheroes have had their day. In today’s world of exponential complexity, neither Batman nor Superwoman would cut it. To be able to run at lightning speed is nice, but will only get you to the wrong place faster. Sometimes, you just have to stop. Literally. Just do nothing. This is hard. Leaders have a biasContinue reading “As a leader, your greatest power is to do nothing”
Slides & recording from my careers webinar at Women in Geospatial+
Today I had the great pleasure of running an hour-long career webinar for the worldwide professional network, Women in Geospatial+. The event was kindly hosted by Julia Wagemann and Kate Vavra-Musser. In this webinar we discussed: The different paths that a geospatial career can take. How the psychology of flourishing and universal human needs canContinue reading “Slides & recording from my careers webinar at Women in Geospatial+”
Talking about geospatial careers on the MapScaping podcast
A couple of weeks ago I had the great pleasure of being interviewed on the MapScaping Podcast which, with several thousand weekly listeners, is one of the biggest podcasts in the geospatial world. Host Daniel O’Donohue and I chatted about geospatial careers, including: What is a geospatial career Why doing good work is not enoughContinue reading “Talking about geospatial careers on the MapScaping podcast”