Interested in getting into a mindfulness practice? Perhaps you want to anticipate your January resolutions or get yourself a spacious mindset ahead of the end of year and holidays?

I am delighted to announce that I will be hosting several weekend workshops on mindfulness and meditation in the coming weeks (in person!), in Geneva’s old town. Online workshops will follow for those not in Switzerland and you can sign up for details here.

n last week’s Looking Forward, titled ‘Fashion as Self-Care’, I edited out a short paragraph in which I mentioned how visions of landfills have impacted me and my behavior towards clothes. It didn’t quite fit into the narrative of the story, which annoyed me, but I did feel able to bring it up in the conclusion at least : my Loving Kindness message to fashion. Thankfully, a new exhibition gives me an excuse to bring the subject up again.

Attention is a subject worthy of an entire newsletter alone (perhaps something for another time). Dr Amishi Jha is a specialist in the matter: the professor in psychology at University of Miami and Director of Contemplative Neuroscience for the Mindful Research has just released her new book, Peak Mind. Expect strategies to learn how to focus, train your mind and perform at your elite-level best, all borrowed from mindfulness but thoroughly established in rigorous scientific studies. To give you a taste, listen to her in conversation with Lewis Howes on his podcast, the School of Greatness. She emphatically says towards the end (I even scribbled it down to repeat to you):

‘What you pay attention to IS your life’.

So I wonder, what do you pay attention to?

I am putting the finishing touches to an interview with Yancey Strickler, ex CEO of Kickstarter and Bento creator. In listening back I was interested to notice that he chose to storyboard his book, 'This Could Be Our Future'. In doing so, he found the right metaphor (the Bento) to convey the message and concepts he'd been exploring.

That 'meh' feeling isn’t gone, at least not for me. So I couldn’t help but want to share this account of Guardian writer Joel Golby trying out life coaching. Because, well, you know what I’m doing, right? [NB I am on my way to being a certified coach!]

I thought it particularly well timed after sharing my earlier musings on languishing, in this earlier Looking Forward post on how I rediscovered my flow (with a little help from a swim coach).

While there are a lot of types of coaching, Mr Golby's conclusion aligns with my experience: ‘Sometimes, all it takes is someone to nudge you in the right direction.’ I’ll add: it works for individuals and for businesses.

Go on, give it a try!

I’ve been mulling over a project called ‘We need a new word’ for just about four years now. So one day, when I came across an article about positive lexicography, I jumped on it and ended up reaching out to the author and professor Dr Tim Lomas. After lightly pursuing him on LinkedIn, he kindly agreed to be a guest on the podcast. Dr Lomas is a researcher on wellbeing, a lecturer in positive psychology and used to be in a ska band in London. For a few years, he has been exploring what he calls ‘untranslatable words’ that can help us expand our understanding of wellbeing, an approach which he considers both universal and inclusive. We also chat about the importance of balance and harmony, what eudaimonia means and lots more. Enjoy!

Fascinating essay, whose title will no doubt grab your attention as it grabbed mine: is Facebook the tobacco industry of the 21st century? Message me to discuss!

I haven’t watched ‘IT’ yet, the show of the season, the biggest ever hit on Netflix. But I’ve seen the references pop up everywhere. If you are like me, you probably want to get the goods without watching the South Korean TV series. I’m sure it’s amazing, it just looks so creepy... Anyways, thanks to Vogue Business, here’s a quick take on whether fashion houses should play with Squid Game.

I do a great job of dodging newsletters. I subscribe, then every morning, I enjoy a session of swiping left on my iPhone before I get a nice and clean inbox. Occasionally, an email slips through, and I read it. That’s how I got to this excellent article about sustainable self-care. Sure, we’ve been talking about this throughout the last fews months, but the writer argues most of us miss the point: it’s not a quick fix, it’s not self-indulgence. It can also feel annoying because, like other important things like social justice and our own inner journey, ‘Authentic self-care isn’t a quick fix and wellness doesn’t happen overnight.’ Developing a healthy lifestyle can suck, as does self-discipline. It feels good to acknowledge, as does the fact we sometimes need a community to support us as we tackle this essential task. A great read, adapted from the book ‘Sit down to Rise Up: How Radical Self-Care Can Change the World’ by Shelly Tygielski.

I regularly listen to Ten Percent Happier, the mindfulness podcast by ABC news anchor Dan Harris. I couldn’t resist the tantalising title of this new episode with guest Andreas Weber, named ‘An erotic approach to the climate crisis’. The philosopher, also author of books like ‘Matter & Desire: An Erotic Ecology’ makes clever points about the importance of relating to the world around us through sensuality (aka our senses), and argues that a greater intimacy with nature will foster a love relationship between us and the environment. One that could help us curb climate change. Dan Harris shows his skills as an interviewer, making this fascinating philosophical stance far easier to understand. I enjoyed it!