The word “snoop” means “to investigate or look around furtively in an attempt to find out something, especially information about someone’s private affairs” and conveys the image of someone prowling around looking for fault inquisitively or in a meddlesome fashion (sticking one’s nose into someone else’s business). Interestingly, in Dutch (snoepen), the word has the…
“Composites” are materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties that, when combined, produce a material with characteristics different from the individual components. The new material may be preferred for many reasons – common examples include materials which are stronger, lighter or less expensive when compared to traditional…
From the earliest histories of populations and cultures, walls have been built not only to support roof structures and other forms of shelter, but also, and perhaps primarily, as a form of defence – to keep marauding tribes and other instruments of hostility out. Walled cities were the norm and eventually walls were used as…
Life’s journey is comprised of a series of “highs and lows”, moments of ecstasy and moments of extreme pain and many other more neutral emotional experiences in-between. These emotional “ups and downs” need to be managed, understood and processed in order to maintain emotional wholeness. Unless one had the privilege of having parents or other…
Do not let the memories of your past limit the potential of your future. There are no limits to what you can achieve in your journey through life, except in your mind (Roy T Bennett) Apparently, the average person has over 30 000 thoughts per day – many of which are helpful and steer you in…
Training, formal or informal, is an important ingredient for growth and development. Not all training is of a high quality, but training serves to stimulate your heart and mind – it gets you to think more broadly, exposes you to other possibilities and helps you evaluate your own progress. Most companies provide adequate training opportunities,…
There are a number of skills, in the eyes of many employees, which make a manager “good” – ability to articulate concepts well, knowledge of the industry, story-telling skills, humour, presence, listening ability, etc. All these skills are important indeed and work together to create a great employee experience. They probably also engender a sense…
In our ever-changing and constantly disrupted world, leadership excellence is a necessity – although seemingly stating the obvious, countless different management philosophies and methods abound, many of which are ineffective and some even introducing toxicity and dysfunctionality into the work environment. Many organisations “labour” under poor and even devious managers. In these organisations, most employees…
I have spoken to many employees in various business contexts who feel that their voices are not heard – their ideas are not listened to. As such, they feel that they don’t have a real contribution to make, feel undervalued and overlooked. Typically, this translates into despondency and many leave their energy and passion at…
When having to go to the medical doctor for an appointment and upon entering the surgery, the door is shut behind you and all focus of the doctor falls on you – questions are asked about your condition, you are examined and a suggested course of treatment is offered. There are no distractions, no pharmaceutical…
“We are hiring!” Many adverts are boring, but some job postings are fun – like this one I happened to read recently: “Thanks for taking a look at the job description for … We felt a little bit impersonal just throwing you right in there with words like “revolutionising” and “disrupting”. As such, we want…
Calcification is the accumulation of calcium salts in body tissue. It normally occurs in the formation of bone and teeth (about 99% of all calcium in the body), but calcium can be deposited abnormally in soft tissue – in arteries, cartilage or heart valves. For example, calcification can occur within the facet joints of the…
