Live from Vienna
And relax… just popped the champagne cork and sat down. Casserole in th’oven. Happy 2023!
Did you catch NYD Concert earlier? I’m listening on repeat—for the umpteenth time.
As per tradition, I went for a bike ride this morning, and just returned from my regular run! Starting the year as I mean to go on.
Have an excellent year!
#BestYearYet
#NYDConcert
A Cupboard of Contraband
It’s almost a month since I stopped eating chocolate. Making the decision was easy—sticking to it has been the challenge. One simple way I discovered was to create a cupboard of contraband. A place where I could safely store (for now) all treats received. Inside, you’d find a hard-to-open tin, with chocolate coins, Tony’s Chocolonely and a tube of Jelly Tots.
Let’s see how long this abstention will list into January!
#BehaviourScience
#SelfRestraint
The King’s Speech
A festive lunch with family, a rollocking repeat of a comedy classic or hiking in the hills to make room for more pudding. What will be the highlight for you this Christmas?
In this weeks The Sunday Scholar, we discuss the frolics and festivities associated with Christmas. We learn about deep respect, fitness goals and faith. We also take a look at writing an alternative Christmas Message.
Our latest episode is now available.
Merry Christmas
Wishing everyone all the happiness.
And thanks for the support throughout the year.
Merry Christmas, Bob xx
Take Smarter Notes
A short film that introduces 3 books:
How to Take Smart Notes, by Sönke Ahrens;
Getting Things Done, by David Allen; and
Building A Second Brain, by Tiago Forte.
Getting better with lighting, B-Roll footage, and the boom mic is better positioned (suspended from a newly purchased C stand)—happy days!
#BobsBookClub
#ProductiveNoteTaking
10,000 metre swim
What fitness goals have you planned for January?
I've a pal in the gym who's planning a 10,000m swim—in one session. He's a good swimmer, so for him, that's 2½ hours in the indoor pool. (Bonkers!)
But it got me thinking.
Why not swim 10,000m—in total, next month. It'll put that crazy distance into context!
Breaking it down—the distance is 2,500m per week, or 1,250m twice a week. And that’s almost achievable.
Big goals are easy when broken down.
#GoalSetting
#InspireBeInspired
The EGSP Wooden Block®
It’s official…
We’ve had confirmation that EGSP Wooden Block and EGSP Framework are now officially registered trade marks. This means quite a few things.
Both trade marks are considered sufficiently different to any existing trade marks.
We can take legal action against anyone who uses our brand without permission, including counterfeiters.
We can put the ® symbol next to our trade marks. :-)
The process was relatively straight forward. All details and process steps are explained at gov.uk website.
We chose the following classes: printed publications (Class 16), business management (Class 35), education and training (Class 41) … and wooden toys (Class 28).
Onwards!
#IntellectualProperty
#EntrepreneurialJourney
A Precarious Walk Home
I should have known better… I wrote today’s The Sunday Scholar with a rather a thick head. Arranged over WhatsApp, it’s been a long-time date in everyone’s diary. Except mine. What was supposed to be a festive drink with neighbours, turned into a few more than expected—then a precarious walk home.
Our latest podcast is now available.
A Fun Way to Improve Productivity
A surprisingly fun way to improve productivity, gain clarity and achieve focus. Who knew! A short tutorial on the benefits of standardisation. Plenty of real life examples, a case study, top tips and an action step to help you on your way.
Apologies for the poor sound quality in a couple of places. It sounds like the mic has been clipped. Going to reduce master sound on Zoom H6 and reposition Rode Boom Mic.
Always learning, Bob xx
#TuesdayTutorial
#StandardWorkingWeek
12 Books in 12 Seconds
Challenge accepted.
Always up for a challenge. I was asked to simplify our latest book review and re-record it in under 12 seconds. The original review was 12 min 48 sec. Not bad considering we mention 12 books and a little bit about each one. (You can watch it on YouTube here).
So thinking creatively, I used a simple prioritisation tool, known as Moscow. Enjoy!
#ChallengeBob
#Moscow
Progress checks in place
What quality checks do you have in place?
Here’s a simple example from our laser cutting process. Any letter that’s not within tolerance (+/- 0.5mm) is considered out of specification. (We’re improving—this used to be +/- 1.0 mm).
Notice the faint burn marks across the Twelve Scholar logo. Protective masking tape helps reduce these marks. And the hand-sanding process will remove them altogether (knuckles withstanding!).
#QualityChecks
#BehindTheScenes
#RepeatableProcess
Behind the scenes: Laser Etching process
Well, this looks interesting.
We’ve been perfecting the laser cutting process for nearly two years. In that time, we’ve made templates, remade templates, created checking fixtures and ultimately developed a process that leads to a consistent product—every time (well, almost!).
This short clip introduces our Scholar Bee.
Notice the hand drawn bee on the right hand side—this acts as a pertinent prompt.
Each side of the wooden block is protected with 45mm masking tape—this prevents burning and damaging the maple. The masking tape is then carefully removed, before fresh tape is placed on the next side.
Hand finished by Twelve Scholars. Every scholar on our Leadership Development Programme receives a unique and limited edition EGSP Wooden Block™ (aka 'Leadership Compass').
Always learning.
#BehindTheScenes
#LaserCuttingProcess
#ScholarBee
Off to a New Home
This little Scholar Bee is off to a new home—somewhere near York.
As part of The Essential Scholar leadership development programme, you’ll receive a precision-engineered hand-crafted EGSP Wooden Block™.
Designed as a Leadership Compass.
Perfect as a paperweight.
Check out the cross-section grain structure.
And just like every leader—each EGSP Wooden Block™ is unique.
#EssentialScholar
#NewHome
Defining Success
Our latest podcast episode is now available.
Listen via our website or simply search for ‘Twelve Scholars’ or ‘The Sunday Scholar’ on your podcast platform of choice.
#TheSundayScholar
#DefineSuccess
#WorldCupFootball
Vertical Glimpse at New course
Attempting two birds with one stone. Trying to get a different angle from the camera tonight—plus capture our online Learning Platform. A twofer!
Here’s a short (40 secs) clip of how the online platform works. We’ve made it really simple. The visual language from the Playbook is continued on screen. And every lesson has a short tutorial film.
#BehindTheScenes
#EssentialScholar
Latest YouTube Video Uploaded
How to prioritise which books to read and what not to read.
Last month, we added 12 new books to our Leadership Library. Which ones did we buy? and why? Learn what makes Bob tick, especially with front covers and the colour yellow!
Note—I've made this film on the back of Matt D'Avella's fabulous 'Master YouTube' course. Always learning. Always wanting to improve. I think we've made a step change—certainly with the addition of B-roll footage.
#LeadershipLibrary
#LovingBRollFootage
Perhaps it’s time to Think Again
Another day. Another book delivery. This time it’s Think Again, by Adam Grant.
Best-selling author, and top-rated professor, Adam Grant was on High Performance Podcast this week (fascinating interview, btw). And so I couldn’t resist the urge with his new book.
From the inside cover, “If knowledge is power, knowing what you don’t know is wisdom.”
We’d better make that 1183 books in the Leadership Library!
#OriginalThinking
#QuestionAssumptions
12 Book Thumbnail
What do you think? Always up for a challenge. Matt D’Avella wanted me to create a thumbnail separately to our latest video. And here’s the result.
Previously, I would create thumbnails from film footage—this has always worked in the past. But the challenge here was to think about thumbnails before we started filming. Matt wanted me to stage the shot. And spend time getting it right. He believes that thumbnails will be critical to our success on YouTube.
(I recently enrolled on one of Matt’s film courses—always striving for Excellence.)
#MasterYouTube
#ThumbnailPerfection
Changes to schedule
We’re launching our first online Leadership Development Programme in January 2023. It’s called The Essential Scholar… and personally speaking—I cannot wait. In fact, I’ve probably been a bit too eager in setting (realistic) dates to start the course.
So after a bit of feedback and encouragement from a few of our Sunday Scholars, we’ll be pushing the course back a week.
The following changes will be made:
The Essential Scholar will commence Monday, 09 January 2023. This allows everyone to get back to work and feet under the desk before starting the course. It also allows an extra week for your special postal deliveries to arrive.
A new workshop will go ahead every Wednesday at 2pm (30-40 mins). This will replace the monthly mastermind. In hindsight, this will help you maintain momentum, and get to know other scholars. The later time allows a clearer diary—and opens the course up to international scholars.
The Graduation and Awards will remain Wednesday, 29 March at 2pm. This is a chance to celebrate your achievement with others. Start with the end in mind. And plan for success.
The introductory offer will remain until Saturday, 31 December 2022.
#TheEssentialScholar
#FasterFeedbackLoops
Attention Seeking Scholar Bees
What’s caught your attention recently?
Here’s a sneak peak at our Leadership Playbook—or more specifically, the rear cover. Look how the light catches the spot varnish. How many bees do you notice?
Launching in January 2023, The Essential Scholar is our new Leadership Development Programme. And every participant will receive an exclusive copy of our Leadership Playbook.
#LeadershipDevelopment
#AttentionSeekingScholarBees