All posts tagged psychology

Golf – I’m That Mischievous Hole

There is always at least one hole on a golf course that appears to have a mind of its own. It is the one that teases the unsuspecting golfer with unfettered hope, but then unmercifully demoralizes them with brutal savagery.

I am that hole.

You may think that a golf course is a placid, inanimate, terrain of grass, sand and water, with a variety of pleasant vegetation, some small, some large. You are very wrong.

We, the eighteen individual holes that when geographically aligned together become a ‘serpentual’ living organism that has one purpose in life, that being to mislead and surreptitiously annoy you, the golfer.

Our craft of subterfuge requires cunning, creativity and innovation where we continually change our layout on a daily basis to ensure ongoing golfer bamboozlement.

Of all the eighteen holes, I am the acknowledged master scoundrel of misery and frustration that relishes the opportunity to strike fear and trepidation into any golfer that treads upon my turf. I just despise the words ‘Par’, ‘Birdie’, but take personal reward on hearing ‘Bogey’, ‘Double or Triple Bogey’, and the greatest of all being ‘Lost Ball’.

The key to my success is my aptitude in being deviously canny and shrewd. Most golfers may experience the ‘occasional’ bad luck on my hole, but the following examples provide testament to my proven methodology.

Lost Ball: Every golfer hates to lose their ball, but in reality, this is not the case. Rather, I provide them with a temporary malady of blindness precisely at the location when they are nearing their ball. The ball is there, but they just don’t see it. Wonderful, isn’t it!

Wind Gusts: Should a golf ball appear to have that perfect trajectory, I have the ability to instantaneously whip up a superb, yet mysteriously powerful micro-wind gust that is excellent in providing the requisite negative ball deviation.

Trees: Once a golf ball enters the canopy domain of my trees, I ensure that the ball ricochets in the exact opposite direction of the green.

Sand Bunkers: I just love watching golfers digging holes. It gives me no end of entertainment!

Putting: This is the masterpiece of my creative ingenuity and one that brings me the greatest pleasure. Many a golfer has been distraught when their strategically planned putt circles the circumference of the cup, never to drop, but to come to rest a frustrating and miserable millimeter from the hole. How do I do this you may ask? Well, that’s my secret and I’m keeping it that way!

In summing up, or should I say when tallying all the above strokes together, some final words of discouragement for the golfing reader. I am a sneaky and mischievous entity that randomly moves from hole to hole based on how I’m feeling on any particular day. So, a word of caution, never assume that a tricky hole will be the same on each day that you play. I am out to cause you golfing mayhem, and I thoroughly enjoy it.

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by Steven Cramer on January 31, 2026  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on January 31, 2026

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2026/01/31/golf-im-that-mischievous-hole/

Those Pesky Weeds of Innovation

As CEO of a large, conservative company that has been in operation for over a century with little or no business growth, how do you know if you have those pesky weeds of innovation in your business? The following are some clues to help you quickly identify them before they can take root and grow.

Ideas: Should you hear an employee uttering the blasphemous words “I have an idea”, then they need to be dismissed immediately before that frightening innovation virus can contaminate your workforce.

Fashion: Luckily these recalcitrant employees are easily identifiable by their annoying clothes, colourful shirts, bow-ties and the occasional hat. Just ask HR to quietly usher them to the exit with minimal fuss.

Laughter: Fun in the office should definitely not be tolerated and should result in the employee being speedily placed on disciplinary action with the threat of instantaneous termination for a repeat offence.

Unauthorised Fonts: Yes, there are strict corporate guidelines that must be followed. Any employee daring to use any other font rather than the long standing and approved black Times New Roman needs to be quickly educated on the 100 year old corporate values that have served the company well, and are based on tradition.

Customers: Any customer having the nerve to complain about our products not meeting their requirements do not deserve the privilege of being supplied by us, after all, we know what’s best for their business. How dare they tell us otherwise!

Career: Any employee seeking clarification on their future within our business obviously does not appreciate the honour of working for us (or should I say for me).

My fellow CEOs, hopefully the above insights have provided you with sufficient information to nippily identify any annoying employees that might be creative, or have mad ambitions of creating a culture of innovation in your company. The key is to act swiftly before their offensive ideas can take hold and spread. God forbid!

Quod Erat Demonstrandum

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by Steven Cramer on January 20, 2026  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on January 20, 2026

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2026/01/20/those-pesky-weeds-of-innovation/

Is it time for an ‘Age Coup?’

Age. It’s a complex thing, the importance of which seems to change frequently depending on where you are in your life.

It is said that age is just a number; so why in the Western world do we commonly characterise everyone according to their year of birth? Sure, there are many sound, well researched legal and practical aspects that both should and need to be adhered to, but why is age such an important factor in the workforce?

When you are at Primary School, those who you knew in High School seemed very worldly and sophisticated. You saw your parents as old and out of touch with the worldly and social needs of your own generation, not to mention your grandparents, who fell into the absolutely ancient classification.

But consider how your age perspectives changed when you yourself entered the workforce for the first time. All of a sudden you saw your parents and others with an increased number of years under their belts as wise and possessing a valued experience, and some you even gave esteemed oracle status.

In the business world, people in their early twenties are typically deemed to be naïve and lack the requisite knowledge, whereas people in their sixties or seventies are seen as being ready for retirement and quickly put out to the vast unemployment pasture.

I believe it’s high time for a long overdue ’age coup‘ where an individual’s mindset and willingness to learn and/or mentor those around them should be the main criteria, instead of how old they are on their employment contract.

To accomplish this, we need to redefine the term ‘age’ and replace it with a combination of a willingness to learn and to share experiences, regardless of whether obtained in the workplace, or via life’s complex journey.

However, to do this there needs to be a mindset change within the corporate world, particularly with in HR where age is commonly seen as just a start or finish date of employment, not a potential indication of longer-term value.

Yes, it’s time for an ‘age coup’ as there are many willing participants keen, able and wanting to join the revolution.

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by Steven Cramer on December 2, 2025  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on December 2, 2025

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2025/12/02/its-time-for-an-age-coup/

Why Be a Moth?

Stop and look everywhere around you and you will observe the effects of a new sociological condition that is quickly influencing the world’s population. The malady is readily seen on individuals of all ages, regardless of their sex, and seems to have a higher concentration in cities where mobile connectivity is at its optimum receptivity. For those that reside in remote geographical locations, its influence appears to be minimal, or hardly ever seen with any noticeable detrimental consequences to the individual.

The condition has been likened to the behaviour of a moth, where the unwary insect is instinctively attracted to any bright light where its eyes are total fixated, upon which the mesmerising spell cannot be easily broken.

The culprit of this unfortunate condition has now been identified, and after numerous independent investigations one can unreservedly state that the source is the mobile phone.

Yes, the mobile phone. When this small handheld item is switched off, or is lacking electronic battery stimulation, many of its owners become quickly unsettled, lack focus, become irritable, seek inspiration, and eagerly await its rejuvenation.

Many of these mobile phone owners need the bright light permeating off their screens in order to function effectively. You will see them wandering the streets with their heads stooped down hovering intently over one of their hands angled to obtain the optimum screen viewing. The routine also applies when seated, or when trying to go to sleep in the evening.

Like a moth, many of these phone users have become so absorbed in the activities on their phone that they have walked into parked cars, become completely disorientated, or sadly killed owing to their single eyed focus.

The problem is also unfortunately seen in business, much to the detriment of productivity where the worker constantly picks up their phone looking for any sign of engagement.

Now why is this moth behaviour not observed in remote areas? The answer is simple. The mobile phone has no receptivity so there is no unwelcome distraction to illuminate and divert the eyes of the user. Remarkedly, studies of people living in these areas were found to have less detrimental psychological problems, in fact, they seemed to be better balanced and happier than their populated city counterparts.

So what does this mean for the well being of society? The answer is simple. Do you want to be a moth that regularly gets its wings singed by travelling too close to a spellbinding beam of light? Or do you want to be in control of your own life flight without the crutch of a mobile phone that continually distracts your way forward?

The choice is yours.  

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by Steven Cramer on September 29, 2024  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on September 29, 2024

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2024/09/29/why-be-a-moth/

It just feels so Good!

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It just feels so good! Yes, it’s that glorious sensation you experience when eagerly opening that pristine door for the very first time as your nose is gleefully engulfed with those joyous automotive wofts associated with that new car interior. The exciting mood continues as you place your eagerly awaiting bottom into that virgin seat with the knowledge that you are indeed the first. You run your hands in a circular motion, anticlockwise, then clockwise, as you gingerly grip the steering wheel with each of your probing fingers where you slowly discover every notch and groove. Out on the road, you smile with snug satisfaction as all parts of the car work in harmonious unison as you carefully navigate the surrounding traffic with a self-imposed mode of cautious stealth. The feeling lasts for an unmeasured while, and then without notice, unfortunately, stops. You have now reached the stage of habitual blaséness where that initial feeling of excitement has regrettably diminished into nothingness. It’s now just a car.

Many an innovative organisation initially commence their operations with that “new car feeling”, but alas, over time, and particularly with success, that blasé nonchalant state gradually permeates throughout the structure leading to creative stagnation. So, what’s the solution?

Think of that car again, but this time focus on all the scheduled, and the occasional unplanned maintenance that is required to keep it humming in a state of perpetual driving bliss. This can take the form of mechanical, structural or aesthetic adjustments, all are required, and need ongoing investment, otherwise it ends up doomed on the scrap heap soon to be forgotten.

Innovation needs ongoing investment to stimulate and maintain the creative machinations of the business. All departments working in the organisation need to finely tuned, continually aligned, and supplemented with that combustible spark of ideation, otherwise it will slowly come to a resistant state of undesirable lethargy. However, sometimes an organisation needs to trade in the old ways of doing business and upgrade to a newer and more inspirational model. If so, don’t be scared to let your employees experience that wonderful new car smell, particularly as some of the newer ones may have never savoured that joy, and those longer serving ones, well, they may need a strong nasal refresher!

So if you want to maintain that ongoing pleasant innovation woft in your business, make sure you keep it well maintained and stimulated, otherwise, you might as well get a horse and get used to a slower, and rather more odorous form of reduced creativity.

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by Steven Cramer on May 25, 2019  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on May 25, 2019

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2019/05/25/it-just-feels-so-good/

Handling the Office Bully

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For those of you that have a bully in your office, now is the perfect opportunity for you to practice some innovative diversionary tactics that will quickly annoy the lifeblood out of the targeted individual.

The bully is a person that constantly seeks attention, so make sure that you give it to them, but not in the way that they are expecting to receive it. This is the beauty of having a well-practised innovative mindset that has been honed via years of experience working in the corporate office.

As with all bullies, once they feel that their psychopathic behaviour is no longer being recognised and is now being neutralised by your positive creativity, they will quickly cease their bothersome traits, or will seek employment elsewhere.

The following are some trusted and proven techniques that will get you well underway in handling any bully, regardless of their age, experience, sex, or position of stature in your organisation.

The “Bill or Jill” Technique:
Here you can call the bully any name that you like, as long as it is not their real name (note: although you may want to, expletives are not recommended). Should the bully be a man, call them “Bill” (or a woman, “Jill”), also encourage other work colleagues to follow your lead. After a while the bully will become furious owing to the lack of personal recognition.

The Sunglasses Technique:
All bullies like to see your eyes so they have a ready reckoner on the impact they are having on you, and those around you. By wearing sunglasses in the office you are depriving them of this required visual insight. It also provides you with an opportunity to fall asleep in their presence, however, make sure you don’t snore too loudly.

The Coffee Slurp Technique:
When in a meeting with the bully, make sure that you and your colleagues continually slurp your coffee in unison, or individually. This is a sure way to break the bully’s irritating concentration, particularly if they are the only one that is coffee-less.

The Foreign Language Technique:
Yep, as the name suggests, just talk in a language that the bully doesn’t understand. After an extended period, the bully will feel completely ostracised and will be in need of some urgently required therapy.

Now a word of caution with this innovative technique that you must fully understand and appreciate before you commence your diversionary strategy. With time, you may start to enjoy your newly found lease of innovative freedom where you want to be an ongoing practitioner of bullying diminishment. At this point, you must immediately cease your creative journey as you may indeed be turning into a bully yourself, something you and your fellow colleagues would not want that to ever occur, regardless of how satisfying the experience may seem!

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by Steven Cramer on January 11, 2019  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on January 11, 2019

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2019/01/11/handling-the-office-bully/

How to Breed Ideas?

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Great to hear that you have decided to become an idea breeder. It is a most rewarding hobby and one that will give you hours of joy and fulfilment. For those of you that have never done this before, don’t worry, it’s quite simple to do and requires minimal mental outlay, all you need is a focused mind.

I’ve been happily breeding ideas for many years, and if you are a novice, the following tips will get you quickly underway.

  1. Idea Type
    Yes, there are many types of ideas, so it’s important to know which ones you want to have in your idea collective (commonly known as an ideation coop). Ideas come in a vast array of different sizes, some are quite quick, others a bit of a laggard to fully develop, they can have short lives, others endure for many a lifetime. If you are uncertain as to which idea is best for you, I would suggest you consult your Thesaurus.
  2. Permit
    Many newcomers to this pastime often ask if they need a permit to breed ideas? The answer is no, so long as your ideas are not too noisy, as this may upset and distract those around you.
  3. Ideation Coop
    This is the most important facet in successfully breeding new ideas. Ideas like to be protected when they are born and require room for growth once they quickly start to develop. For this, a cosy thought box seems to work best, one with a special code that only you have access to thereby ensuring complete ideation security. Some breeders like to use a trademark or patent for their really special ideas, but this does come with a cost.
  4. Coop Maintenance
    New ideas will need creative nutrition to survive and maintain a healthy life. The best food for ideas is inspiration. It’s OK to start off small, but once your baby ideas get a taste for it, they will quickly grow and mature.
  5. Mating
    Ideas are very social and thoroughly enjoy a good interaction with other like-minded thoughts. They are capable of mating at any age, an activity which should be strongly encouraged, as it will ensure their long-term survival and a robust cross fertilisation of creativity which is an essential part of their development.

The next step is for you to give it a go! Don’t worry if you don’t get it right the first time. Ideas are very forgiving if you make a mistake, in fact, they appreciate it, as it shows that you are really committed to the ideation process.

Now go forth and breed!

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by Steven Cramer on January 5, 2019  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on January 5, 2019

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2019/01/05/how-to-breed-ideas/

The Very Social Idea

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If you have ever put yourself in the shoes of an idea, you would be exhausted!
Ideas are the biggest socialites in the known world and are universally recognised as the life of any party.

Ideas just hate the thought of being singular, they have an innate psychological need to be plural. Just put two solo ideas in a room and they will immediately start interacting with each other with a carefree and unrepentant promiscuity.

Ideas are also ageless, once created via a spark of unleashed human inspiration, they instantaneously become immortal and will happily congregate on mass within any hospitable corporate environment that willingly supports their requisite cosy culture of innovation.

However, there are some businesses that ideas have officially declared as a no-go zone. Those decreed as dull and boring organisations are like innovation vacuums that regrettably do not accommodate the individual and collective requirements of these festive wildlife thought manifestations. Once classified as an office of devastating inspirational lack, ideas will deliberately avoid these plagued businesses until a corporate culture of redemption has been successfully implemented, and publicly proven to be operationally effective. But once the requisite cultural correction has been made and externally communicated to the world of thought creation, then the ideas will fill the void with a gusto of spontaneity that would put any cashed-up pop-star to shame!

Now don’t assume that all ideas are identical. They are each different, and have a unique personality that frequently changes depending on their mood, and also to the environment to which they are exposed. But that diversity of thought is indeed their strength, as they, and their resultant factorially numbered offspring, all lead to a continual birth of new and wickedly clever innovations, none of which are ever the same.

So as a human, when next you walk into a corporate office and sense something unusually electric in the building, it is not your imagination, you are just responding to a large gathering of ideas having a hoot of a time!

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by Steven Cramer on December 11, 2018  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on December 11, 2018

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2018/12/11/the-very-social-idea/

Seek the Buzz

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It is said that the taste of success is sweet, but it is the culmination of a great deal of tireless organizational movement, just like that found in a beehive. In fact, business can learn a great deal from the sticky activities of the humble bee.

The CEO, or “Queen Bee” establishes the colony and sets the direction and longevity for its future. However, if the Queen Bee gets a tad tired and lacks the support of the total bee population, the hive will swarm and the the life of the CEO bee will indeed become short lived.

Some General Managers are like “Drones” where they happily lounge about in a state of privilege where others do their work and continually feed them with inspiration. However, their prestigious life is short lived because once they have done the “deed” with the Queen and are no longer required, they are quickly made redundant and their functions are absorbed into the food chain of the colony as a legacy for its long term sustenance.

The majority of employees are the “Worker Bees” of the business who keep the financial entity fully buzzing in a state of harmonious order, and with a continual influx of much needed inspiration from the outside market.

Occasionally “The Board” comes along and smokes out the business via regular inspections to ensure the hive is operating effectively. Any areas of concern are swiftly removed awaiting the required correction, which may be a new Queen Bee.

The output from the business is deemed “honey” which can be sold to the market for cash where it is used as a core ingredient to drive recipes of innovation in a range of applications.

Occasionally pests and other undesirable vermin may try and infiltrate the hive. Should they be successful, they are like a virus that is difficult to eliminate. Hence the need for a trusty IT guard at the hive entrance to keep those classified as unwelcome well and truly away.

So to achieve a meaningful buzz in your corporate office, it is important to make sure that every employee knows their strategic role in the honeycomb structure. And should one bee, regardless of their stature hierarchy, flap their wings out of the requisite corporate vibration, they will quickly encounter a rather unsavoury end to their corporate career. For others, life will be blissfully delicious.

 

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by Steven Cramer on November 4, 2018  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on November 4, 2018

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2018/11/04/seek-the-buzz/

The Brave New Office

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In a rather obscure, and regrettably, often ignored, paragraph in the classic 1935 novel supposedly written by Aldous Huxley titled “Brave New Office”, there is a clue as to the true source of sustained business innovation. Unfortunately, many corporate leaders have deliberately not heeded this now wise futuristic premonition and their leadership has suffered the perilous consequences.

Huxley outlines a corporate office in which humanistic creativity is directly linked to electronic devices for their inspiration and ongoing mental stimulation.

The paragraph states, “It was time for me to develop a corporate business plan so I carefully followed the detailed directions stipulated by my CEO (Central Emotion Organiser) and sat in the padded ideation chair located in the soundproof chamber, fastened the thought stabilisation seat belt around my waist and gently placed the mind activation headphones on my ears. I was now in complete isolation from the surrounding office and could only hear the thoughtful messages being directed to me by those ultimately more sagacious than myself.

Using the electronic thought pad placed within easy reach, I dutifully typed the words of communicated instructions that I obeyed without any need to question their authority or reasoning. Once done, I then touched the send button and the masterly corporate business plan was immediately replicated and distributed throughout the organisation for implementation by my fellow workers.

The whole process took less than 60 seconds to complete. Who could have imagined that many years ago, those in the corporate world that we now call “creative savages”, used nothing but the archaic ideation tools of their own mind, complemented with the incomprehensible use of a hand driven ink device that engraved odd-shaped letters on a fibrous paper medium. In the words of my CEO, totally unbelievable!”

The year is 2017 and I now look at all the electronic thought enhancement tools the corporate office now uses to drive innovation. We are all totally reliant upon our computer, iPhone, E-mail, TV, and a plethora of other associated and interlinked communication devices.

Why not try something brave, and definitely not new, in your corporate office?

Yes, it’s most likely hidden in the back of your stationery cupboard covered in a deep layer of cobwebs. Once you find it, it’s called a pen and a writing pad. To use it, just let your thoughts go free, unhindered by any electronic support device and scribe in free hand any ideas presented to you. With time, I promise that you will get used to it, you might even enjoy the positive emotive sensory feeling associated with writing!

Go on, free the creative savage within you, and redefine your Brave New Office.

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by Steven Cramer on October 21, 2017  •  Permalink
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Posted by Steven Cramer on October 21, 2017

https://thinkingfuturethoughts.com/2017/10/21/the-brave-new-office/

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