BOTTLING THE GOOD STUFF

Bankers are in the news again. Sir John Sunderland, Chair of the Barclays Remuneration Committee, defended Bob Diamond’s bonus – even in retrospect.  It was for Bob’s “enthusiasm, energy and skill”. Yeah, I’ve got lots of that too. Fred Goodwin had too.  And lots of people had it before Bob - like the Kray twins.

No, seriously, I’m tired of Burglar Bashing. Burglary’s a tricky and dangerous job with rotten hours which needs lots of creativity what with sliding credit cards in door jambs and so on. And it kick starts the economy with people having to replace all the stuff that’s been nicked. So if we had more burglaries the economy wouldn’t be in decline.

So let’s hear it for the energy, enthusiasm and skill of burglars and bankers.
And if you feel short of energy and enthusiasm pop into Neal’s Yard. I was there the other day picking up something. “Ah good”, I thought, “it’s virtually empty, two assistants, two customers”. Fifteen minutes later the same score. The assistants were selling the virtues of Dandelion Sperm or whatever.

Iin a daze I looked at the aromatherapy oils. Three stood out.

Optimism. Vitality. Focus.

They smelt nice enough but it was about more than scent. The promise was so powerful. They have, it would seem, bottled the sort of stuff that Bob Diamond got paid millions for and for less than a tenner for all three.
Oh and I got to sniff Frankincense too – a dry woody, pine smell that has a cosy, churchy smell to it –sort of comforting….anyway it was Sir Ken Robinson who told the splendid story of how children apply their minds to new things to make sense (frankincense) of them.

There was a small boy in his Primary School Christmas play in the part of the wise man Caspar the Gaspar, the Indian bringer of Fankinsense.

With supreme self-confidence he swept on and said:

“Frank sent this.”

He must have been massaged with Neal’s Yard Body Polish Enriched with “Confidence” by his mum.
Anyway here’s my recipe for enthusiasm in case Neal’s Yard are interested.

Take one positive person. Stir regularly with plenty of travel then mix in:-
Lots of curiosity
A pinch of a sense of the ridiculous
A library of books, articles, films and news
Scrub with energy
Introduce a roomful of other like-minded people
Infuse with laughter and …
A generous measure of rebelliousness
That should do it.

It will make you so enthusiastic it’ll have cynics running for the hills or the banks.

www.colourfulthinkers.com