Entries by Matt Wright

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The Grammarian – Latin abbreviations to be cut short

The GDS (Government Digital Service) has announced that it is set to abolish Latin abbreviations on its websites, to avoid confusing non-English speakers.

So, in the near future:

  • e.g. (exampli gratia) = will be replaced by ‘such as’
  • i.e. (id est) = replaced by ‘that is’
  • etc. (et cetera) = replaced by ‘for example’

That presumably means that no CV’s will henceforth be accepted on government websites, at least after 2017 AD….oops, sorry, can’t say AD (anno Domini).

It’s a shame that in this post-BREXIT world, the quality of civil servants will drop as well, since there probably won’t be any posts available for any M.A’s (Magister Artium) or indeed Ph.D’s (Philosophise Doctor) and certainly no advertised salaries paying £x p.a. (per annum) read more read more

August 22, 2016 /0 Comments/by
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BLT Discussion – Who blows your whistle?

We’re all good at blowing our own trumpet, but are we as proficient at blowing our own whistle?

Against the backdrop of the Rio 2016 Olympics, we witness athletes competing against the clock on a daily basis, giving it 100%.

Can we emulate these athletes in our daily working lives?

If only everything was that simple?

Fundamental time management

Since I had my first child earlier this year, I’ve had to become far more time efficient, otherwise there simply aren’t enough hours in the day

One of the BLT (*) members is a new mother, who now works a 5 day week in 4 days, leaving Friday free to spend at home.

By her own admission though, she hasn’t always been this organised – it’s amazing what an external referee can do (in this case, a baby) from a time management point of view! read more read more

August 18, 2016 /0 Comments/by
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George Orwell, Newspeak

Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?

Newspeak was George Orwell’s fictional language, invented for the book 1984.

It was created by the totalitarian state Oceania, and allowed only a narrow range of very specific words in an attempt to control freedom of expression and thought.

Ironically, many of the words created by Orwell to convey how a regime can repress a population, are now in common use today as a form of self-expression.

The Background to Newspeak in ‘1984’

Any form of thought which differed from that of the governing party – Oceania – was classified as ‘thoughtcrime’ read more read more

August 15, 2016 /0 Comments/by

Eurovision from a true visionary

Eurovision – a brilliantly misconceived attempt to bring the peoples of Europe together on the wings of a song. when all it demonstrates, year after year, is how far apart everyone is. Musically, at least

Don’t worry, this isn’t another post-BREXIT piece, it’s an altogether different take on Eurovision…..although I suppose it should be called Euro-sound if we’re taking things literally.

I won’t make any apologies for channeling the genius of the late, great Terry Wogan, having only just written about him last month when selecting some of his most eloquent phrases.

“A marvellous laser display” he said of Belgian’s 1987 entry “I would have appreciated that a bit more if it hadn’t been for the fella knocking seven bells out of the guitar

Terry was the King of Eurovision, long before Graham Norton adopted the mantle of Court Jester in chief. read more read more

August 1, 2016 /0 Comments/by
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Cognitive Dissonance – why the fuss?

Cognitive Dissonance – where the desire for consistency between an individual’s expectations and reality gives rise to irrational behaviour

Cognitive Dissonance – it’s a phrase you might begin to hear more often in the wake of the Chilcot Iraq Inquiry.

The Theory

According to Leon Festinger’s 1957 theory, we hold many cognitions (i.e. beliefs or assumptions) about the world and ourselves; when they dissonate (i.e. clash), a discrepancy ensues resulting in a state of tension known as cognitive dissonance. Or ‘A Clash of Beliefs’ in layman’s terms.

There are four ways in which individuals will seek to reduce cognitive dissonance; i.e. adapt reality to fit in with their own particular outlook: read more read more

July 25, 2016 /0 Comments/by
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Banjaxed – Wogan’s favourite word

The great maxim at the BBC is, if it ain’t broke, break it

Dear old Terry – the man who introduced ‘banjaxed’ into the English vocabulary (or at least popularised it) – was a wordsmith of heroic proportions, and hence somewhat of a hero of mine.

I was going to write a blog about Terry’s best ‘bits’ following his untimely demise in January this year, but such was the scale of celebrity deaths that it might have seemed rather mawkish at the time.

However, six months on, I think it’s appropriate to revisit some of my favourite Tel quotes, as a celebration of the English language. read more read more

July 18, 2016 /0 Comments/by

‘Equivalent Hysteria’ – or how ‘Remain’ failed in 7 quotes

There were people turning up who had never voted before. They did it this time because they were very angry with what they felt had been done to them in their communicates over decades – the decline of industry, the rapid increase in people coming to this country, the levels of austerity.

In a General Election they might think it doesn’t matter who you vote for because they’re all the same. In the Referendum, they recognised this could lead to something different. Maybe they didn’t anticipate all the consequences…but there was a sense that you could change things read more read more

July 13, 2016 /0 Comments/by
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MarkEATing Case Study: Vicars Game Newsletter

Challenge

Vicars Game sells far more than just meat – it is a successful independent supplier to trade and public alike from its location in Ashampstead.

Most of Vicars’ trade had come via reputation and by word of mouth – marketing activities have been limited to date.

Yes, Vicars Game does sell meat.....

Yes, Vicars Game does sell meat…..

Vicars Game - shop

….but they sell far more than just that!

 Solution

A Newsletter format was suggested as the most effective initial marketing activity for Vicars Game. read more

July 8, 2016 /0 Comments/by
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The Tyranny of Choice

Choice – a Publican’s View

The trouble is they try to please everybody, and they end up pleasing nobody. They’re trying to do too many things. They’re trying to entertain you, feed you, offer wines & spirits, when all you want is a decent pint of beer. You can’t please all the people all the time, so why bother

People come in here and say ‘What wine have you got?’ and I say ‘White. That’s it, it’s white wine, I’m not sure what it is. Narrowing the choice down makes things easier read more read more

July 8, 2016 /0 Comments/by