Month: September 2020

As a Continuous Improvement professional, I am used to looking at a process and attempting to squeeze out an extra few per cent of performance.

But, as with all things lean, we must, at some point, put people back in the centre of our thinking. When we do this, it soon becomes clear that we must start where we stand and begin from the inside out.

Take Paul Akers for example, he of Two-Second Lean. The man is simply full of energy and vitality. Is this just a character trait? Possibly. But maybe he is running on higher octane fuel – his engine is driven from the foundation of his diet.

So, I looked within. Could I honestly state that my diet enhanced my performance in the workplace? If anything, the way I was eating was having a detrimental effect. If I wanted to find that extra few per cent, I had to look at how I was feeding my energy.

With this minor epiphany, I looked up a company called Allplants. As I remember, an advert appeared on my Facebook timeline. For some reason, Mr Zuckerburg seems to know what products I need before I know – so I followed the link.

Arriving at the website, it seemed clean, bright and intuitive – so I had a further look around. The scheme works a little like this. You chose six meals and a subscription plan. The plan enables you to have a box of meals delivered at a time-frequency of your choice. You can have a box every week, every couple of weeks, or even once a month. The option is yours.

As this was an experiment, I chose monthly, but then found it easy to cancel the recurring subscription plan – so you have need have no fear of being locked into something you might not want.

Next comes the difficult bit.

From a list of over thirty meals, you have to choose just six. I navigated this challenge eventually and waited a couple of days for delivery. (It should be noted that I ordered on a Bank Holiday Weekend, so delivery really is rapid.)

What struck me first is how beautifully packaged the meals were. They arrive frozen, in a remarkable thermal box. You are provided with a return label for the packaging, and this can be dropped off at a convenient location near you. Mine was left outside in a safe place for a few hours and were still beautifully frozen when I unpacked them.

The meals themselves are also strikingly packaged and come in natty cardboard sleeves, so there is no doubt as to what meal you have. One pleasing aspect of the sleeve is the autograph of your chef on the side. I felt this small touch connected the customer with the business. It was clear that somebody had taken pride in the preparation, and cared about the customer experience.

One thing to mention here. Do you know how ready meals often have tiny portions? Well, I attempted to alleviate this by ordering the two-person size. I needn’t have worried. The two-person size is very much as described! If there is just one of you, a single portion will be sufficient!

Also, know that all meals cook from frozen. This feature is great for me because I often forget to take food out of the freezer before I go to work. It was nice to know that I was always going to have a hot, nutritious meal to eat when I got in after a hard day in the automotive world.

Now onto the important bit – the meals I chose:

• Smoky Soul Chilli – This was delicious! The chipotle chills were a bit hotter than I was expecting, but this was a welcome surprise. A striking addition was the crunchy coconut cornbreads. I felt they were remarkably innovative and underlined a theme for all of the dishes. As flavoursome as all the food was, the chefs also worked hard to add different textures. That bit of crunch elevated the dish.
• Shepherd’s Pie – Now, between you and me, I am something of a Shepherd’s Pie connoisseur, but this was wonderful! That sweet potato topping complimented the rest of the dish and the addition of the paprika crumb, for texture was glorious.
• Lasagne Noci – The winner here was the butternut squash bechamel. Accompanied by walnut ragu and mined mushroom, it was as good as any lasagne that I have tasted.
• Super Green Risotto – Again, this was a very textured dish, with complimentary and fresh flavours. The seasonal greens tasted as if they were picked yesterday, and you could just feel that they were doing you good. I would say this was a summery dish, but I could equally see myself eating this on a dark winter’s night.
• Nacho Bean Chilli – My second chilli dish on the list and equally as good as the first. With so many ingredients, I guess it would be easy to produce something where flavours were battling. However, some serious R&D has clearly been done by the good people of Allplants, as this meal was awesome! Add in the tortilla chips for texture, and we have another winner.
• Teriyaki Udon – Not my favourite of the dishes, but this is because I am not at all adept at eating noodles! I was still able to recognise a beautifully textured and balanced piece of cooking, put together with craft and love.

To conclude, I think this was an experiment that I will definitely be repeating. With all those other options to try, it would be churlish not to! I am recognising that diet, hydration, exercise, and quality sleep are vital ingredients to finding that little bit extra. Therefore, these meals can be certainly described as adding value to my life, while saving time and helping me cut out junk food.

I’m off back to https://allplants.com/ to have a look at what my next order will consist of. Perhaps you will join me there?

Simon D. Gary is the author of “Kaizen Your Life” – the book that describes how you can apply the techniques of the Japanese Business Masters in your day to day living.

“The meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person’s life at a given moment. To put the question in general terms would be comparable to the question posed to a chess champion: “Tell me, Master, what is the best move in the world?” There simply is no such thing as the best or even a good move apart from a particular situation in a game and the particular personality of one’s opponent. The same holds for human existence. One should not search for an abstract meaning of life. Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life to carry out a concrete assignment which demands fulfilment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone’s task is as unique as is his specific opportunity to implement it.”

I must admit, I am nervous about writing this book review. Will I be able to find the words to make it meaningful and do Viktor E. Frankl’s classic text just a fraction of justice?

So I begin with the extensive quote above, in which Frankl describes the shapeshifting nature behind the meaning of life. It is in the moment, of the moment, for the moment. Tomorrow, that same soaring ideal may not offer you a similar feeling of sustenance.

“Man’s Search for Meaning” is a slight, but towering tome. It’s author, Viktor E. Frankl, is considered to be the father of Logotherapy, often called the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy, since it builds on the work of Freud and Adler.

In the second half of the book, Frankl unpacks the basic tenets of Logotherapy. His paradigm has its root in the Greek word Logos, or “reason” – following the existential reckoning that a life imbued with real meaning is a life that can withstand any hardship, however extreme.

We saw recently, in our article on Ikigai, that meaning has a transformative effect on our attitude. We may find that nothing in our external locus changes, but the realisation of a deep purpose can nourish our outlook and cleanse our thought. This change of attention is enough to become free – we are only ever one thought away from mental clarity and wellbeing.

Frankl shares some brief case studies in which he reframes the struggle of his patients in terms of a stoic meaning. Particularly striking is the story of the grieving husband. This man’s daily struggle was almost overwhelming until Frankl asked him to consider the following. In surviving his wife, had this man not spared her the agony of his passing? In this sense, Frankl’s patient was able to bear his grief, as he had found meaning in it. The same struggle was spared for the wife he so deeply loved.

I found this story to be especially poignant, given the horrors described in the first half of the book. For it is here that Frankl describes the three years he spent in various concentration camps, including the darkly infamous Auschwitz.

At the time of his internment, Frankl had already been formalising Logotherapy for around sixteen years. In the squalor and inhumanity of Auschwitz, Frankl’s theories would be exposed to the sternest of tests – sterner than anyone dare ever imagine.

Frankl describes with skill and a manner of detachment, the three phases of the camp prisoner. First came shock. Then, a strange apathy quickly followed. Frankl describes how the horror of seeing the daily beatings was soon replaced by an acceptance of their inevitability.

The final stage, as Frankl painfully writes, was disillusionment. The author notes that when this stage was reached, death swiftly followed. The certainty of imminent death replaced the former glimmer of hope. Frankl observed that, at this point, the doomed fellow would smoke the last of his hard earning cigarettes. In a life with hope, this item would be kept and exchanged for extra soup.

So, it was through the life purpose of sharing Logotherapy that Frankl found meaning and the thread that tied him to survival. Many of his family were not so lucky. His wife, Tilly passed in Belsen. His father died in Terezin, and his mother and brother were killed in Auschwitz. It is difficult to fathom the grief and guilt that Frankl must have carried after and, indeed, he does not dwell in this.

In the world in which we find ourselves, there is one other colossal lesson the Frankl gives. Under the seismic pressure of facing death on an hourly basis, Frankl describes two extremes. At the one end are the murderous capos, privileged prisoners whose cruelty almost matched that of their captors. One the other extreme, Frankl shows images of men and women who went to their deaths to save others, full of stoicism and peace. Perhaps in these tragic ends, these victims had found their own meaning – in offering the extension of life, and therefore hope, for another loved individual.

The lesson, however, as Frankl states, is one of choice. We always have a choice in how we react to our circumstances – even if they are the most horrific and fearful. It is a sobering thought to bring this article to a close.

“Man’s Search For Meaning” by Viktor E. Frankl is one of the most important books that has ever been written. It is moving, yet at the same time, soaringly liberating. It is a fitting tribute, lesson and moral compass. All should, one hopes, get the opportunity to read it. Beauty and affirmation are present in all things.

My closing hope echoes my opening fear. If I have not done this book a fraction of justice and tribute, then it is because my words have failed me. Please forgive me. Perhaps mere words could never be enough.

Love to you all, and I hope you find your meaning.

“Fearproof Your Life” by Joseph Bailey is a book that I highly recommend that you read.

For an author that has spent his professional life as a psychotherapist, this book represents the leading edge of human psychology.

The book draws on three simple principles, thought, mind and consciousness. As the monk Dandapani reminds us; we are consciousness flowing through mind. When we accept this principle and halt our consciousness on our true selves, this book can serve as both a map and an anchor.

“Fearproof Your Life” is exceptionally well written and flows with the ease that this book can unlock for all of us. It is incredibly accessible, as the reader realises that concepts revealed have been hiding in plain sight.

So, what can we expect if we are able to silence the fear with which our ego seeks to protect itself? Bailey explain, in his engaging way, that the gift is connection. It is both a connection to our higher, universal selves and, by extension and compassion, a deep connection with one another. Bailey uses the compelling metaphor: if fear is the ocean in an archipelago of our own islands, then, when it is drained – the illusion of the individual and the ego is shown to be false. It is for this reason that any hatred for others, for whatever reason, is a reflected hatred of ourselves.

Bailey goes on to reveal that the language of our connection with our True Self is intuition – a voice that many of us have long forgotten.

This revelation got me thinking about the nature of business, and how we are becoming increasingly reliant upon reams of data to help in our decision making. Surely there must still be room for intuition and hunches in our working world?

We tend to reserve this sort of thinking to the world of our creatives, but Bailey would argue that none of us are any more creative than another. Those that drive progress through inspiration are just perhaps more adept at listening to and trusting that inner voice. Bailey shows that this quality is within reach of us all.

The Three Principles still remains one of the worst hidden secrets in human development, and “Fearproof Your Life” may well become one of the core texts that finally brings this most empowering of topics to a broader audience.

For this reason it is very easy to recommend this work, and I can definitely say that Joseph Bailey will be an author whose work I will be exploring further.