MarkMorleyFletcher

It’s common to feel that if you’re going to do something, you should do it ‘properly’. That’s all well and good, but it’s easy to fall into the trap of taking ‘properly’ to mean that you’ve got to include everything possible — that it’s not ok to leave things out. The phrase “Go big, or … Read more

Some people meander lazily, while others forge ahead with energy and urgency. It’s usually the apparently ‘lazy’ ones who end up achieving more. It’s natural to want to get to your goals as fast as possible. But the key phrase here is “as possible”. That means no faster than possible. When you try and rush … Read more

This year I’ve declared an ambition to be ruthless. Actively exhorting myself towards it — and feeling downright disappointed when I don’t measure up. It makes perfect sense to me, but I get dodgy looks whenever I mention this to others. Shouldn’t you be aiming for something ‘nice’ like “patient”, “playful”, “kind”, or “bold”? They … Read more

It’s really important to think conceptually about what you want from the world.  Unless you have deep insights and grand plans you’ll tend to end up spending your energy indiscriminately. Head down in the weeds getting things done without a plan. Or going around in circles.  But this is only ever half the battle… You … Read more

Would you start a business just to learn new things? I never intended to, but it seems like that’s what happened… When I started Play In The Zone, it was a buzz. But it was also overwhelming. Everything was new. Running my own business. Having to sell things. Having to create and publish online.  What … Read more

When you notice things aren’t going the way you want sometimes you’ve got to stop pushing. Stop. Step back. And consider the bigger picture. When you do this you’ll usually find you need to retrace your steps. Perhaps you took a wrong turn somewhere back down the trail. Or maybe you’ve been building on shaky … Read more

Somewhere in the last few years I fell out of love with my business.  There had always been tasks I didn’t feel like doing. Always times when I was anxious and worried about whether things would work out.  This was different. But when I first noticed things felt ‘off’ — more of a fundamental and … Read more

When life’s rich torrent is foaming and bubbling around you, you can bail as hard as you like but you’re only ever going to get some of the water out of the bottom of the boat. It’s simply not possible to stay on top of everything in life. So the key is to make sure … Read more

The creative path is never straight as an arrow. Most people understand this instinctively. They’re prepared to wind back and forth on their creative journeys. Maybe even hit a dead end or two. But do you realise that there’s another stage after you’ve got as far out as you can on this bold exploration into … Read more

There’s no creativity without the possibility of failure. And the more creative you want to be, the greater the risk of failure that you need to embrace. Creativity is, by definition, involved with bringing new things into the world. That requires uncertainty. The new thing can’t exist yet — otherwise it wouldn’t be new. Everything … Read more