Is it money, fame, and glory? This can be true to varying degrees for many people, but if you are not one of those people, what is your real motivation for doing what you do? I watched one of my favorite films ‘Sideways’ last night. Spoiler alert if you haven’t seen it! At the very... Continue Reading →
Is The Grass Always Greener?
According to my taxi driver this morning, a change is as good as a rest. Maybe it was because I hadn’t had my coffee yet, but I started wondering if that was really true. What are the benefits of change? Is change really restful? I often find that people see change as quite a stressful... Continue Reading →
What Do You Really Stand For?
If you’re setting up your own business, working for somebody else, writing a book, creating your own art or whatever it may be, what do you want to say that makes you different to everybody else? How will people notice you over the white noise of the world? Maybe you’re writing a novel for love,... Continue Reading →
How Sitting Still Can Make You Stronger And More Productive
I’m a big fan of using to-do lists to help me get things done and may even be a little dependent on them. However, I recently saw this quote on one of my favourite websites which made me think about them differently: “Life isn’t a big to-do list.” Leo Babauta (Zen Habits) Of course, it’s... Continue Reading →
Big Egos Have Little Ears
My favourite coffee in Spain is a cortado, which is kind of like an espresso with a dash of milk. I’ve been living here for 5 years now and I’ve probably had at least two cortados every day since then, so I’ve had more than three thousand of them in that time, which also means... Continue Reading →
Encuentra Tu Gente
Puede ser difícil ser quien eres. A veces eres tú que es tu peor enemigo o mayormente, la gente a tu alrededor de ti, como tu familia o tus amigos, aunque te digan que te quieren. Tal vez tengas sueños en los que quieres renunciar a tu trabajo para viajar por el mundo o empezar... Continue Reading →
What If It Goes Right?
A friend was recently telling me about their plans for setting up their own business. They'd been thinking about it on and off for years and things were such in their life that now seemed like the perfect opportunity to make it happen. But strangely, although she was clearly passionate about this idea, all I... Continue Reading →
Can What’s Missing Be Your Strength?
I have been a fan of Q (English music magazine) for many years and in the latest issue, I was reading an interview with a band called Royal Blood. Now I'm not really a rock fan but every now and again a band comes through that I really like and Royal Blood are currently and... Continue Reading →
Sky Full Of Morning Stars
It’s 6am on the first day of November and quite dark outside. I couldn’t sleep and so I tiptoed through the house so as not to wake Mrs Cortado and our dog Grace to go outside and get my phone which I’d left in the car. On my way back, I promptly dropped it (clearly... Continue Reading →
How Bruce Lee Helped Me Get A Spanish Driving Licence
Perhaps this is something we don’t like admitting, but although we may want to get things done as soon as possible, sometimes it will just take longer. And that doesn't have to be a bad thing. I’ve just managed to get a Spanish driving licence for a friend. It's been a process which started... Continue Reading →
Nothing Like A Coffee And Some Time
I'm sitting on a lovely, ever-so-slightly battered brown sofa in my favourite bar (Cafe Cyrano) in Almería, my recently adopted 'big city', listening to my new favourite album ('Hey Mr Ferryman' by Mark Eitzel) with a cortado coffee and an orange juice. I've just put my car in for a service. Not a big deal... Continue Reading →
I’m So Bored Of Goals
I've always been a great believer in the power of setting goals as they really help focus your mind on where you want to be and what you want to achieve in your life. However recently I've been thinking a great deal about now. This very moment. And as each second passes, yes, we could... Continue Reading →