George Bernard Shaw observed, “I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it”. Dealing with difficult people can be like wrestling with pigs. But we don't have to wrestle; we can listen and talk instead. We can choose not to go in the sty. Clients and opponents, and sometimes fellow workers, can demand our time, attention, and compliance.
In the event of decompression, an oxygen mask will automatically appear in front of you. To start the flow of oxygen, pull the mask towards you. Place it firmly over your nose and mouth, secure the band behind your head, and breathe normally. Although the bag does not inflate, oxygen is flowing to the mask. If you are travelling with a child or someone who requires assistance, secure your mask
The idea of kanban was developed in the late 1940s by car manufacturers Toyota. Line workers displayed coloured cards to notify their colleagues down the production line that they needed parts for assembly work. ‘Kanban’ is a Japanese word for a ‘card’ or a ‘visual signal’. A kanban system is visual and underlies communication within teams so that departments can quickly identify the work that needs to be done and
The recent Bar Council report revealed that over half of barristers don't sleep well. They are certainly not alone. Sometimes the difficulty is in falling asleep after a busy day and working long into the evening. Sometimes we wake in the middle of the night to find thoughts racing and find we've been unconsciously planning tomorrow's work and worrying about things that didn't get done yesterday. Sometimes we'll wake too
And a really, really simple focusing exercise: Focus on your breathing for only a minute. When you become aware of thoughts intruding, just return to focusing on the breathing. (It's not as easy as it seems!) (Next) (This is an edited excerpt from my book A Lawyer’s Guide to Wellbeing and Managing Stress published by ARK Group in 2015.) (Back to index)
This focus takes about five minutes. Count the steps off with your fingers if this helps. It can help to regain a sense of perspective on days which are particularly chaotic. 1 Concentrate on your breathing. 2 Past: Think back about what has happened so far today. 3 Present: What's happening now, in this moment? What feelings and thoughts are around? What's happening around me? 4
