The eye twitch

It's said that no-one can diagnose your ills better than you can yourself. I don't whether it's a call-back to the days when I used to row and spent my days teetering on the cusp of sudden illness but I can tell when I need to start looking after myself more. There's a physical signal that tells me that I'm over-worked, over-stressed or just not getting enough sleep and it's a comedically irratating twitch in the corner of my right eye.

Most annoyingly, it's not visible to anyone - I know, I've asked - but I can feel it and it punctuates my days.

It's been about nine months since the twitch last decided to visit but recently it sent forward notice that it was coming back to stay.

I've been really busy in the last few weeks; not specifically at work, though we've been winning a great portfolio of new clients, but mainly doing fun stuff like meeting ex-colleagues and networking.




In the last two weeks, I've filmed cocktail adverts on the streets of Paris and watched the sun rise over the city from Sacre Coeur as part of the huge Hotwire European office bootcamp, taken part in the Flackenhacks organising commitee piss-up and attended a thousand and one other things that put me in touch with some really bright people.

I hate my eye twitch, it's a real pain in the iris, but in exchange for the opportunity to visit new cities, help run a wicked event and have lots of intelligent, if drunk, conversations it seems a small price to pay. I really do love our industry.

By the way, if you're interested in following new Flackenhacks 2009 developments, the Flackenhacks twitter feed is now up and running.

Seconded....

I found this site through the marvel that is StumbleUpon and I've decided that it may well be the cutest thing ever. It's a post on Sharenator with a load of letters to God written by children.

I don't think I've ever seen such brilliant examples of logic.

Barry Schwartz: The paradox of choice

Two interesting counter-points to Long Tail theory have emerged today. The first is a piece written in the Harvard Business Review by Chris Anderson's research partner.

The second is a video of a Barry Scwartz lecture at the TED conference discussing the paradox of choice and the parallels between economics and psychology.

Hotwire in the FT!!!

Got a chuffing great bit of news this morning. Hotwire has graced the pages of this weekend's Financial Times. I'm especially chuffed because it's my account team that secured it and we're storming at the moment.

Have a peek at the piece.

Nothing like a bit of shameless plugging.

Thoughts from Mount Sinai

I've just got back from Egypt, well actually I flew in last Thursday but really who's counting? I thought I'd pass on a synopsised account of my holiday on the Sinai peninsula.

My friend from school, Matt, and I went to Dahab to go and get away from it all and sort out our windsurfing moves - he has many, I have none.

We'd been last September and had an awesome time and so decided to return but on the proviso that we would visit more of Egypt than the westernised resort where we were based. It led to bouts of near dysentery, abject exhaustion and lots of English gesticulating and shouty conversations but has been one of the best holidays I've had in a long, long time.

Anyway it's provided me with a whole database of anecdotes, some of which I'll pull out here and some I'll keep in reserve for high-level networking events but in the meantime find my holiday broken down in pure fact terms.

Places visited:
Resort in Dahab- 10 days of incredible windsurfing
The top of Mount Sinai - climbed in pitch darkness for an amazing sunrise money shot
Cairo - One of the most irritating and yet worthwhile seven and a half hour coach journeys I've ever embarked on
The Treebar in Masbat - Fancy dressed hi-jinks in Masbat's premium bar

Words learnt - phonetically spelt:
Shukrun - Thank you
Aeshtar - Awesome (said complete with hand-wavy surf's up motion)

Books read:
The Long Tail- and not before time; it's been on my must read list for AGES!
Freakonomics
Atonement
A bound collection of articles by an Independent war correspondent - came free in a copy of the Indie

Injuries sustained:
Lots of bruises
A few cuts
Six insect bites
One dislocated toe that's still three times its original size

Acheivements:
Two pub quizzes won
Six pyramids seen
New found sailing confidence bordering on cockiness
An awesome tan

Photos up soon!

Freakonomics government stylee

It would appear that the good old Government has been spending our taxes accumulating reams of data that it has no idea how to use.

Desperate to find validation for all of this measurement and surveillance, Whitehall has offered £20,000 in prize money to smart arses who can come up with a piece of technology to improve the lives of British citizens.

Good ideas will be provided with access to gigabytes of public data and suggestions of potential winning ideas include FixMyStreet - which allows users to alert other to litter, vandalism and graffiti and RateMyPrison. If nothing else this demonstrates that the Government reckons any idea named in a YouTube format is a good one.



Steven Levitt the economist behind Freakonomics suggested that with massive accumulations of data it is possible to find the answers to practically any question. On this basis, shouldn't we be trying to find out why kids are stabbing each other rather than allowing prisoners to pass opinion on the comfort of their surroundings? Just a thought.

Heatwave

If, as Edison once said, genius is 99 per cent perspiration and 1 per cent inspiration; this afternoon our office is full of Mensa candidates!