When it comes to writing, probably the best advice is to plan, plan, plan before you actually start writing. Separating the tasks of idea generation and writing is a good way to think about it because once you have your ideas down, it's just a matter of moulding the words to suit what you want […]

Think of everything as an experiment. That new shirt? It's an experiment to see whether it works with your old jeans. That new recipe? It's an experiment in flavour combinations. That new blog? It's an experiment in expressing your ideas. Thinking of things as an experiment helps you get over other people's words and opinions. […]

I promise I'll stop with this type of blog post, soon enough, but I've been blogging every day now for half a year. I've gotten more and more used to it everyday, it's now something I don't think too much about. Getting ideas out into the world has been excellent. I think my ideas can […]

Don't know what you want to do with your life? Travel. Experience different ways of life, meet different people, eat different food. What this does is two things, it lets you learn about other cultures and customs, but more important it helps you learn about yourself. Getting away from your comfort zone helps you appreciate […]

What an annoying set of words. I mean people don't say it, they more insinuate it with their actions and expressions. Either way, once you hear or sense it, you know you've fucked up in some way or another. As a resident in Japan, this happens quite often, even after nearly a decade. Now though, […]

When you're giving a presentation, or any sales talk, always remember that no matter what you say, if it doesn't interest the audience, it's useless. The trick is to focus entirely on what the audience wants to hear, and to work your content around that. This has the added benefit of removing your 'self' from […]

A few years back when I was working in Amarume at an elementary school, I was asked why I like to swim so much. Some of the students had obviously seen me at the pool or something so it wasn't such a weird question, but I answered something that may have been a bit too […]