Welcome to Postcards from the Ledge. Two or three times a year we take the most interesting articles, links and pictures the Totem team have found over the preceding few months and put them into an email which we deliver to your inbox. Expect pieces on outdoor learning, tips and tricks for the workplace, beautiful photos and news of upcoming open courses. Our aim is to provide a little bundle of inspiration in what can sometimes be a grey world.

We love hearing from people so if you enjoy this issue, let us know and if you come across something you think we might find interesting, send it to us and we may include in the future.

Sam
sam@totemdevelopment.co.uk

Definite Articles

The best articles we've seen on the internet over the last few months.

The Maker's Schedule vs The Managers Schedule
Paul Graham makes some interesting points about the difference between way people who produce things and people who manage things work. If you have a company where creative-people mix with accountants and managers, it's worth a read. (more...)

Ueli Gegenschatz @ TED2009
Ueli Gegenschatz's business card lists himself as a "aerialist / insurance and precaution advisor" which disguises the fact that he has come closer to being able to fly than anyone else alive. This short video of him giving a talk at TED2009 is more that just extreme sports exhilaration, he talks about the preparation, knowledge and experience he has had to build up over the years. Stick around for the great Q&A at the end.(more...)

Thank-you for Leading
Seth Godin penned this short piece about how hard it can be to lead sometimes which resonated with our trainers. His premise that "If you’re not uncomfortable in your work as a leader, it’s almost certain you’re not reaching your potential as a leader" seems also true of personal development training. (more...)

The Cloud Appreciation Society
The Cloud Appreciation Society exists to celebrate the endless variety that exists in our skies. Anyone who spends anytime in the outdoors cannot fail to appreciate the extrordinary patterns that clouds form and the information that can be gained if you learn to read them.
"We pledge to fight ‘blue-sky thinking’ wherever we find it. Life would be dull if we had to look up at cloudless monotony day after day."(more...)

If the UK were a village of 100 people...
...and all current demographic and social proportions remained the same, what sort of village would it be? Simon Usborne of The Independant leads a revealing guided tour.
"There would be 80 adults (aged 16 or over), of whom 40 would be married and 11 would live alone. The villagers would have 118 mobile phones between them (66 of which would be pay-as-you-go). There would be 55 telephone landlines. "(more...)

A View on the World

What did you do this summer?

Photo from Drewski Mac's Flickrstream.

Best of the Blog

We try and fill our blog with the same interesting articles you get in this newsletter, mixed with a good amount of original content. The best of the last few months is gathered below

August 17^th - An empire built on tea

August 12^th - How many emotions can you name?

July 21^st - What have you bruised recently?

June 18^th - Fried Eggs and Group Discussions

Wise Words

The opposite of play isn't work. It's depression.

Brian Sutton-Smith, University of Pennsylvania

Totem News

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