From the Desk of Caspar
I was struck by something yesterday.
As a family we were at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich.
Of the many stories told there, there is one which affects every single one of us every day.
It’s the story of John Harrison.
Anyone heard of him?
Not many people have.
He was the man who solved the problem of longitude.
The science of being able to work out exactly where you are in the world.
Something we take for granted now with GPS and google maps on our iPhones.
Back in the early 1700’s his breakthroughs revolutionised seafaring and being able to navigate safely.
Here’s the untold story.
Just how long it took him to crack this.
The breakthrough watch was called H4.
He took 18 years to build it.
18 years.
Just think about that.
How many times do you think he woke up in the morning and thought “I’m a disaster, I’m a failure, this is going nowhere, it counts for nothing”.
18 flipping years.
How many people would have given up in that time?
It’s a masterclass for me in patience and curiosity.
Being driven by curiosity to solve a big problem.
And the patience to keep going.
And keep going until you get there.
To create something that would save countless live and create the foundation for literally how all of us navigate the world.
What’s the message?
Be curious.
Be patient.
Encourage your team to be curious and learn.
We live in such an immediate gratification age with social media where everyone seems like an overnight success.
Find a problem worth solving, get curious and be patient.
18 years.
The pic is my 6 year old. I encourage all the “teams” I’m part of - both at work and family (because they all work the same way) to get curious and learn .
She’s here in the Christopher Wren designed Octagon room looking at the stars and listening to the audio of it what she’s seeing.
Have a curious week everyone.
In the Spotlight
As a teenager I listened to the Radio a lot. I guess like a lot of other teenagers growing up in the late 80’s and early 90’s.
One of the iconic DJ’s I listened to back then was Steve Wright in the Afternoon who at that time was on Radio 1.
Memories of summer afternoons pretending to be revising when sitting outside on the grass on Plymouth Hoe in the sunshine listening to Steve Wright playing Prefab Sprout, INXS and Deacon Blue come rushing back to me.
It’s therefore with a good amount of excitement that on June 12th I’ll be interviewed by Steve Wright in the Afternoon on BBC Radio 2 meeting and talking to one of the icons of my teen years.
In fact I could not be more be more excited.
If you could make a song choice from the late 80’s/ early 90’s? {clearly I have no influence over anything!}
I think I'm going with The King of Rock n Roll by Prefab Sprout.
Listen to Caspar being interviewed on the Steve Wright Show here.
The Irish Independent
In other media, the Irish Independent voted “Where the Magic Happens” one of their recommended summer holiday reading books.
And to top it all...
That feeling when you get off a plane and check your Amazon rankings and you're in the Top 100 of all books on Amazon (#87). And the #1 Mover and Shaker on Amazon.
That.
A huge, huge thank you to everyone out there buying Where the Magic Happens and for all the stunning reviews you are kindly sharing.
If you want to check it out and the 50 plus 5 Star reviews we've had it's right here.
We only hear what we understand
One of the biggest hurdles to progress?
Thinking that other people think the same as we do.
Remembering we all see things differently can be such a powerful tool for getting unstuck.
Our experiences and perspectives are unique to us.
Don’t fall into the trap of assuming other people think like you.
Remember: we only hear what we understand.
Be a Better Leader
Need more stuff? Nope. Didn’t think so.
Who here needs more stuff in their life?
Nope didn’t think so. Me neither.
One simple tip that you can action immediately.
Thought for the Day
Upcoming Adventures
June 12th - BBC Radio 2 Interview with Steve Wright
June 13-14th - Keynote - Boston, MA
June 16th - Keynote in Southampton, UK
June 21st - Leadership Masterclass in London, UK
June 22-24th - Event in Dublin, Ireland
June 30th - Guest Speaker, Plymouth, UK
July 12-13th - Keynote Speaker, Malta
July 15-17 - Event in Dallas, TX
August 2nd - Filming in LA
August - The next sailing adventure…
“Caspar thinks of himself as a Speaker, he’s more that that, he’s an extraordinary story teller.”