THOUGHTS & REFLECTIONS
A collection of insights and thoughts around personal improvement, happiness, well-being and mindset
INSIGHTS TO LIVE A BETTER LIFE
Although this section of the website isn’t directly about the outdoors or hiking, it reflects an evolution of the site to also cover broader related themes. The below posts have a focus on some personal reflections and insights.
One of the reasons I love the outdoors is because it gives me the space to unplug, reflect and find clarity, helping me live a more authentic, happier and healthier life. So this page is just a place to clarify and collect some of those thoughts and insights (for my own personal reference if anything), but I’m also sharing them in the hope they resonate offer a useful perspective to others!
The problem with a lack of boredom and unstructured time
ONE OF THE MOST UN-NOTICED CHANGES OF MODERN LIFE The collapse of unstructured time is one of the defining yet largely unnoticed changes of modern life. Moments that were once spent waiting, walking, daydreaming or simply doing nothing are now instantly filled by...
Be where your feet are
Simple words, sounds obvious? But surprisingly difficult in reality...for me anyway 😂 We can spend a big chunk of our time being somewhere else in our minds other than where we physically are. Thinking, planning, to do lists, worrying, ruminating about the past,...
Rediscovering the joy of doing things for their own sake
I’ve been into hiking and the outdoors long before social media and smart phones were a thing. When you done something just because you enjoyed it. When seeking online validation or likes wasn't even a concept (there was nowhere to even share your photos) and they...
The Improbable Planet – Against all the odds, we are here
Introduction: A Chain of Improbable Events I think many of us are guilty of taking things in life for granted, and indeed we are guilty of taking life itself for granted and life on this planet. When you step back and look at the bigger picture, life on Earth doesn’t...
Learning to Be More Grateful – an instant way to feel happier
We seem to live in a time where more and more people feel dissatisfied with life. At the same time, gratitude has become a bit of a buzzword—something we’re told we should practice because it’s “good for us.” And there’s truth in that. Genuine gratitude has a...
The Most Important Story is The One You Tell Yourself
"We cannot choose our external circumstances, but we can always choose how we respond to them." ― Epictetus The most powerful story in your life is the one you quietly repeat to yourself every day Your life is, to a large extent, a creation of your...
Happiness is….
What is happiness? I'm sure we all have a different take on that, and the more experience we have I guess the more certainty we can have on where happiness is and isn't to be found. Something the greatest philosophers have pointed to for centuries - is that...
Why we need to spend more time outdoors to fix the world (and ourselves)
Why we need to be outdoors to fix the world (and ourselves) We are living in changing, challenging times, with new issues surfacing constantly: Mental health problems are rising (with rapidly rising rates of anxiety & depression, 1 in 5 young people in the...
What Went Well today? Your Reticular Activating System
Feel better by changing your focus. You don’t need to change your life to change your mindset—just change what your brain is looking for. Your brain has a built-in filter, the Reticular Activating System (RAS). Think of it like a spotlight operator in your...
Do We Need a Better Measure of Societal Progress?
Many of the challenges facing modern civilisation appear different on the surface—climate change, declining mental health, loneliness, obesity, pollution, loss of biodiversity, job disatisfaction, unemployment, AI concerns, financial stress and political division. Yet...
Film review: Perfect days – a meaningful metaphor to live life well
I recently watched Perfect Days, an Oscar-nominated film that, on paper, felt exactly like my kind of story. I expected to be moved in obvious ways — to be handed clear, quotable wisdom. Something I could point to, pull out a quote, and say, that’s the message. But...
The Four digital horseman – Deluge, Distraction, Dementia & Depression
We are living through one of the biggest behavioural shifts in human history — the rise of smartphones and a screen-dominated world. In just over a decade, these devices have become constant companions, rarely leaving our hands or even our line of sight. They wake us...
Access to Nature Matters: Why Every Person in the UK Deserves Access to Green Space
Access to outdoor spaces isn't a luxury – it's essential for our health, happiness and future. This website is about encouraging people to get outdoors amongst nature, understand the physical & mental health benefits of being outdoors and see some of the finest...
The secret of happiness is not found in seeking more….
“The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.” - Socrates The older I get the more I realise It's the so-called little, simple things that bring the greatest joy. But the modern world constantly whispers...
Isolation, Boredom and it’s Usefulness
In a world that is constantly switched on — notifications buzzing, feeds refreshing, noise everywhere — isolation is often seen as something to avoid. If you happen to be on your own - the temptation is to reach for someting that will distract, often a phone, usually...
Don’t wait to be happy…
Do you feel like life is just one big endless “to-do list”? And you’ll take some time to be happy at some point in the future? Stop that. It’s futile and you’ll be forever chasing the carrot on the stick I say this because I do it myself (more so in the past) and see...
The great outdoors inspiring that special feeling of Awe and igniting something inside of us
Those epic landscape views can't help but install a feeling of awe in us, which has many benefits to our well-being, happiness and health. I love the outdoors, I think that’s pretty obvious if you follow my stuff, such as this blog or my social channels haha. I...
The Meaning Crisis: Why Humanity Needs a New Story to Reconnect People, Purpose and Planet
Why reconnecting with nature may be part of solving the deeper problems of modern life. We have never had more freedom, yet many people have never felt more lost. For thousands of years, human societies were built around shared beliefs, traditions and stories that...
‘Glimmers’ – a game changing way of looking at the world around to boost your happiness
Glimmers are those micro moments of goodness in our lives Glimmers - those micro moments of goodness in our lives Have you come across the concept of ‘Glimmers’? It’s a concept I've only just come across, and a bit of a game changer in being able to alter our...
The need for nature
The need for nature All life on Earth is intricately woven together in a vast, interconnected natural web of life, where every living organism plays a role. Humans are not separate from this system—we are a part of Nature. Plants, animals, microorganisms and humans...
