The Weekend Read – The 50 Rules of Life by Eric Sanford

Posted on July 14, 2017 by Alun Rees

I can find little about Eric Sanford online but I know that he is a journalist and photographer who fell into writing after spending too much time “drinking beer” when studying engineering at college. I believe he spends as much time as he can sailing – there is a scary account of his being swept overboard (when breaking one of the rules of sailing as it happens) in Ocean Navigator.

I have no idea when I bought this little (82 pages)book*. It has a dedication in the front which reads, “To Alun – If you play by the rules you miss all the fun! Eric”. Delicious Library (my cataloging programme for books etc) tells me that this was first published in 2005, the year that I decided that clinical dentistry was no fun anymore but this edition was released in January 2011.

So far so good, in the forward Eric explains that he wrote the book when, after making the same mistakes over and over again, he determined to learn some lessons so he wouldn’t keep repeating his blunders. Although his rules are personal many can apply equally to most of us. Using “50 Rules” helps me to stay grounded, reminds me of my core values and helps me gain perspective. I think Eric’s exercise is one that most of us could and should copy. I have a document on the desktop which I copied from the Guardian, “This much I know” which makes a start.

The reason that I have re-read it this week is that I am in the middle of one of my regular periods of re-appraisal, examining my mindset, my motives and my methods reflecting on what’s working, what isn’t and what adjustments in course I need to make for the next year or so.

Here are some examples from the book:

  • Rule #1 Make your dreams come true.
  • Rule #2 Write it down.
  • Rule #3 Do it now.
  • Rule #28 Believe only what you see with your own eyes or hear with your own ears.
  • Rule #33 Don’t assume that others share your views.
  • Rule #47 Question authority.

Having now written about “The 50 Rules of Life” I am minded to write my own as an exercise, why don’t you?

I believe you can buy a copy from LULU.com.

*PS. I realise that I bought it on the recommendation of my friend the ocean rower, environmental campaigner and coach Roz Savage MBE, FRGS, who is mentioned, but not named, in the opening chapter. 

 

 

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The Monday Morning Quote #426

Posted on July 3, 2017 by Alun Rees

“Buying books would be a good thing if one could also buy the time to read them; but as a rule the purchase of books is mistaken for the appropriation of their contents.”

Arthur Schopenhauer

As I look forward to catching up with my reading during July & August I realise that he was right.

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The Weekend Read – 20,000 Days and Counting by Robert D. Smith

Posted on May 19, 2017 by Alun Rees

The concept of this book is simple, instead of living your life in years, as most of us do, measure it in days. On the 20,000th day of his life the author decided to test the concept and planned his next 20,000 days.

Written to be read quickly because, as he points out, “life is short”, Robert Smith urges you to read with a sense of urgency, with purpose and anticipation.

I routinely ask my clients what they truly want, and very few of them can come up with a specific answer. My role in life is not only to help them reach their goals but, more importantly, to assist them to find what those goals are.

When was the last time you thought of what you wanted to do with the next portion of your life? I mean sat down on your own for more than a few minutes and planned the next year, the next decade – I suggest that you take time away – a couple of days distanced from the routine day-to-day to think, to consider to decide what it is that you want to achieve, to be. It is rare that anybody does this unprompted.

In late December 2012, my wife and I did just that, instead of indulging in the “one-day, wouldn’t it be nice” we decided to sell our home in Gloucestershire and move to what had been our “holiday home” in West Cork as quickly as possible.

  • What is it easy? No way.
  • Was it the right decision? Without a doubt.
  • Are we happy? Definitely.
  • Might it all come crashing down tomorrow? Of course.  But then “life is dangerous, nobody gets out alive”.
  • “No reserves. No retreats. No regrets.” (William Borden)

“Many men live lives of quiet desperation and die with the music still in them.” wrote Henry Thoreau in Walden, if that describes you in any shape or form then this little book will help you.

The chapters are short, the messages simple yet profound.

Take the time now and visit the day counter at Robert’s website HERE – to see how many days you have been alive – at the time of writing I’m at 23,438. Where  are you and what are you going to do with the rest?

Available from The Book Depository HERE

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The Weekend Read – Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig

Posted on April 29, 2017 by Alun Rees

A great work of the genre known as “popular philosophy” I believe. I read this many years ago and it left its mark on me, if only for a desire to ride a motorcycle through Montana. The author died this week at the age of 88, coincidentally I had been searching without success for my copy of the book last weekend.

The lasting impression was the author’s pursuit of the meaning of “quality”. Bought during my impressionable “hippy” days in the mid 70s, I thoroughly enjoyed the tale of  the author and his son who together with a couple of friends make a 17 day motorcycle journey from Minnesota to Northern California. There is a great contrast between the author’s approach to motorcycles and that of his friend John. The author drives an old bike and maintains it himself whilst John has a newer cycle and doesn’t want to learn how to look after itself instead he relies on paying mechanics to keep it going.

It took me until I was an experienced dentist and practice owner to better understand the differences between the classical and romantic approaches to life as explored and explained by Pirsig.

Worth a read, unfortunately I wasn’t able to get along with his next book Lila – I’ll try again.

Available from The Book Depository HERE.

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The Weekend Read – Deep Work by Cal Newport

Posted on April 15, 2017 by Alun Rees

This is a “must read” for anyone who feels they are getting overwhelmed or even too distracted by 21st century life. Subtitled, “Rules for focus success in a distracted world” it does exactly what it says on the cover. I regularly hear complaints from my clients that they are having problems focussing on the most important things in their life, that their surgery or office door is opened too often, that they feel the need to deal with emails, phone calls and social media as soon as they are aware of them. If your appointment book is ruling your life and you are having problems finding space & time in your life then do yourself a favour and read this.

Newport defines Deep Work as “Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. Their efforts create new value, improve your skill, and are hard to replicate.”

He contrasts Shallow Work as, “Noncognitively demanding, logistical-style tasks, often performed while distracted. These efforts tend to not create much value in the world and are easy to replicate.”

In the first half of the book the writer explains his hypothesis, which is, “The ability to perform deep work is becoming increasingly rare at exactly the same time it is becoming increasingly valuable in our economy. As a consequence, the few who cultivate this skill, and then make it the core of their working life, will thrive.” He then describes examples of Deep Work from a variety of walks of life and how it has helped individuals to success.

In the second half of the book he lays down The Rules for Deep Work, which are:

  • Work Deeply – Remove distractions.
  • Embrace Boredom – Schedule the occasional break from focus for distraction.
  • Quit Social Media – Initially off putting but his argument is cogent and correct.
  • Drain The Shallows – To eliminate the amount of time for shallow work aggressively schedule your entire day and quantify every activity.

Essential.

Available from The Book Depository HERE

 

 

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The Weekend Read – Steal like an artist by Austin Kleon

Posted on March 18, 2017 by Alun Rees

A present from my brother in 2012, this is a small book with a big message that punches well above its weight. 

The concept behind Steal Like An Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative is that we learn by copying.

The chapter titles are to the point and act as a great guide:

  1. Steal Like an Artist. (All creative work builds on what came before. Nothing is completely original.)
  2. Don’t wait until you know who you are to get started. (Fake it ’til you make it.)
  3. Write the book you want to read. (Don’t write what you know, write what you like.)
  4. Use your hands. (Step away from the screen – your hands are your original digital devices.)
  5. Side projects and hobbies are important. (Don’t worry about unity from piece to piece, what unifies all your work is that you made it.)
  6. The Secret: Do good work and share it with people. (Put stuff on the internet)
  7. Geography is no longer our master. (You don’t have to live anywhere other than where you are to start connecting with the world you want to be in)
  8. Be nice. (The world is a small town).
  9. Be Boring. (It’s the only way to get work done).
  10. Creativity is subtraction. (Choose what to leave out)

In respect to the book (and because I am short of time) I am quoting from the review on the excellent  Actionable Books – do yourself a favour, look them up & subscribe. Weekly reviews of  interesting business books. 

What completely resonated with me, as I pondered the notion that it all has been done before, is that this idea is actually very freeing. It removes the “burden of trying to be completely original.” No pressure. Can’t come up with that new product? Pulling your hair out to develop the next best viral sensation? Trying to figure out what to write about next? No pressure. It has already been done before. So, go look at the best of what has been done before and steal from it.

Available from The Book Depository

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Why Dentistry Is Separate From Medicine – and the possible consequences

Posted on March 14, 2017 by Alun Rees

Why Dentistry Is Separate From Medicine 

The divide sometimes has devastating consequences.

Doctors are doctors, and dentists are dentists, and never the twain shall meet. Whether you have health insurance is one thing, whether you have dental insurance is another. Your doctor doesn’t ask you if you’re flossing, and your dentist doesn’t ask you if you’re exercising. In America, we treat the mouth separately from the rest of the body, a bizarre situation that Mary Otto explores in her new book, Teeth: The Story of Beauty, Inequality, and the Struggle for Oral Health in America.

Specializing in one part of the body isn’t what’s weird—it would be one thing if dentists were like dermatologists or cardiologists. The weird thing is that oral care is divorced from medicine’s education system, physician networks, medical records, and payment systems, so that a dentist is not just a special kind of doctor, but another profession entirely.

But the body didn’t sign on for this arrangement, and teeth don’t know that they’re supposed to keep their problems confined to the mouth. This separation leads to real consequences: Dental insurance is often even harder to get than health insurance (which is not known for being a cakewalk), and dental problems left untreated worsen, and sometimes kill. Anchoring Otto’s book is the story of Deamonte Driver, a 12-year-old boy from Maryland who died from an untreated tooth infection that spread to his brain. His family did not have dental benefits, and he ended up being rushed to the hospital for emergency brain surgery, which wasn’t enough to save him.

A thought provoking read which continues here.

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