Creativity & Climate (Engine)
Being an Amateur
We often use amateur as an insult at work. But the word comes from the Latin for lover — and Vivian Maier's story shows exactly why that matters.
Latest
Learning & Practice (Flywheel)
How to lead with curiosity
The meeting moved on. Someone named the problem, proposed the solution, and the room agreed. Six months later, it turns out you were right. On developing curiosity as a practice — whether anyone listens or not.
Creativity & Climate (Engine)
The conditions behind great creative work
For creativity to emerge it typically needs a different question: how do we discover what might be possible? That requires different conditions. Less friction. More trust. More room for work that can't yet prove its value in a spreadsheet.
Creativity & Climate (Engine)
How learning to see is the art of generating ideas (Word at Work)
We use the word idea casually. But it traces back to a Greek verb meaning to see — and that changes how we understand what ideas actually are, and where they come from.
Communication (Wiring)
First impressions
He appeared from the site office as I walked onto the lot. My verdict arrived before he'd opened his mouth. First impressions really are made in an instant — and the research on how to influence them is worth knowing
meeting notes
Hope, spirit and belief - Meeting Notes
Meeting Notes is Cultivated's weekly letter — Sent Sunday, also in the members' archive. This week: Restoring hope, spirit and belief in work.
Communication (Wiring)
Animal Communication Styles: Lion, T-Rex, Mouse and Monkey Explained
A practical breakdown of the Lion, T-Rex, Mouse and Monkey communication styles—and how to adapt your behaviour for clearer, more effective communication at work.
meeting notes
Impact, Letters and Noise - Meeting Notes
Meeting Notes is Cultivated's weekly letter — Sent Sunday, also in the members' archive. This week: Writing letters, impact and noise.
Creativity & Climate (Engine)
Don't take the job
Fun at work isn't a perk or a Friday-afternoon extra. Read properly, it's the earliest signal you have of a team's health — a barometer that moves long before the dashboards do.
meeting notes
The ratio, again - Meeting Notes
Meeting Notes is Cultivated's weekly letter — Sent Sunday, also in the members' archive. This week: Revisiting the ratio of adding value, or auditing those who do.
Idea to Value (Physics)
AI, Interpretation, and the Widening Gap Between Idea and Value
Many organisations replacing people with AI aren't cutting costs — they're moving them, and often widening the gap between their ideas and the value those ideas should generate.
Idea to Value (Physics)
The shift from projects to products is real — and it's not just a renaming exercise
A senior leader stands in front of a slide titled "Our Product Operating Model" and describes, in fluent jargon, what is essentially a project plan with new vocabulary. The shift most enterprises are making from projects to products is real — and it is rarely the shift they think it is.