EDITION 803
3 FEBRUARY 2020

As another week slips by, here are 10 things which caught my attention and may have escaped yours. This newsletter is sent to 50,000+ subscribers each Monday. Please share on social media and forward to your colleagues and friends so they can subscribe, learn and engage. I'd be very grateful if you did.

1.  How to overcome glossophobia. This isn’t a dangerous disease or chronic condition; it’s the medical term for the fear of public speaking. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 74% of people have Glossophobia which ranks higher than Thanatophobia, which is the fear of dying. To reduce your fear of public speaking, use these tips: READ MORE >>

2.  The UK left the EU. It's been a long process, but the UK officially exited the European Union after 47 years. The UK flag was removed from outside three EU institutions in Brussels early Saturday morning and it will be displayed in a museum. Now begins an 11-month transition period in which the UK and the EU will negotiate their future economic relationship. An interim arrangement, under which the UK will continue to follow EU rules, is set to come to an end on 31st December 2020. BBC

3.  How to fall in love with your job. Few people have the perfect job, the kind that gets one to spring out of bed. But small tweaks can help reverse this feeling of disengagement. One underrated solution is getting to know your colleagues better: Research shows casual catchups with peers make work more enjoyable. Second, find a sense of purpose – ask yourself how your job is making an impact. Finally, mix things up a bit, whether it’s your workstation or the hours you work. Fast Company

4.  Applications for foreign passports soar. The number of Britons seeking a second passport from another EU member state has soared since the Brexit vote, new figures show. More than 350,000 Britons have applied since 2016, with some giving up their British status. And while just over 32,000 citizens in Northern Ireland and Great Britain applied to receive Irish passports in 2015, that figure has quadrupled in the past four years. Daily Express

5.  Will we ever be productive enough? In the age of overflowing life hacks promising efficiency, how do we know if they're actually working? While the billion-dollar industry of productivity hacks and tricks aims to provide more control in our lives, many believe it only serves to add pressure and distract us. Thinking we are never productive enough can result in chronic anxiety, with these hacks distracting us from the hard work required to "get life done.” Critics say these attempts to "life hack everything" distract from the challenges crucial to cultivating personal growth. Would you like to be more effective, and not just efficient? Please click on the link below.

6.  London loses edge as finance hub. London has fallen even further behind New York in the ranking of the world's leading financial centres. That's according to research which found Brexit uncertainty has undermined the UK capital's reputation as a financial powerhouse. Some 56% of senior officials from the finance industry said they see New York as the world’s most important money hub, while only 33% considered London as such – that's a decrease of more than 20 percentage points over the past two years. Financial Times

7.  These are the UK’s top LGBT employers. Newcastle city council has been named the most LGBT inclusive employer in the UK. It marks the first time a local authority has ranked top in equality charity Stonewall’s top 100 list assessing how employers treat their LGBT staff. Channel 4 entered the rankings for the first time, with Sainsbury's the only supermarket to feature. Research by the charity revealed that more than a third of LGBT staff have hidden their identity for fear of discrimination, while one in eight trans people have been physically attacked by a customer or colleague. The Guardian

8.  Working 24/7 will cost you. Many jobs now have an “always something to do” mentality, and staying online is blurring the line between work and leisure. British employees work more than 10 hours overtime every week on average, clocking up 469 hours of extra work a year, and giving away more than £30bn. Smartphones make us feel obligated - and often responsible - to respond to emails 24/7. With organisations introducing email etiquette policies, critics question the sustainability of round-the-clock work, urging individuals to rethink their time online. The Telegraph

9.  How to really beat procrastination. Procrastination is often classified as a time management problem - you tidy up your desk or inbox rather than start the project you will barely have time to complete, for example. But psychologists increasingly find that procrastination is actually an emotional management problem. For example, the task we’re putting off is actually making us feel bad. The shift in thinking is important to beating procrastination. If you find yourself putting off a task, think of a simple thing you can do to get started. BBC

10. The bottom line. Britons spent an average of 2.4 hours a day on their mobiles last year, 15% more time than two years ago. The global average was 3.7 hours, up 35% since 2017. Yahoo