A Pause for Breath

Posted by Steve Marshall  Follow me on Twitter

When I think back to my first days as a fledgling consultant, keenly independent yet hopelessly naive as I stepped out into the world of freelance practice, I realise how lucky I was to bump into people who freely gave their time and energy to help me on my way.  Over the years, things have changed for me but I still value those connections and, as we build meus, try to find time to help along anyone who might be in the same position as I was when I was starting out.

One of my good friends from the early days, and still a highly valued colleague, is Amanda Ridings of Originate.  Here we are messin' around at the Andy Goldsworthy exhibition at Yorkshire Sculpture Park a couple of years ago. Amanda is, as usual, demonstrating crystal clear clarity as I mess around in the murk of Goldsworthy's dung-smeared window. (Erm, yeah, he really did that..!)

Amanda has been a key influence on my practice since the early days; we worked together on dialogue within the NHS and experimented with dialogue, tai-chi and visual methods with a specially selected group of OD practitioners in the magical setting of the New Lanark world heritage site.

I was fully underway with my doctoral studies when we made this picture and Amanda was starting to write about dialogue and mindfulness, both of which are cornerstones to her unique and impressive consulting practice.  

Anyway, Amanda's book, Pause for Breath is now out and here it is! You can read an excerpt on the ALIA website.  I was lucky enough to get a sneak preview and found that Amanda had written a real gem for anyone bringing dialogue and mindfulness to their work. 

This is what I offered for the back cover blurb: 

"I have a small number of books that rarely find their way onto my library shelves.  These are the ones to which I refer constantly and have become touchstones of my practice.  They are full of good stories, practical examples, interesting questions and well-tested wisdom. Over the years, they have become dog-eared, flagged, annotated and stuffed full of notes. They travel with me and I never loan them.  Amanda's 'Pause for Breath' will become one of those books."

Pause for Breath will be available from 4th July - you can order it here and I will have it on our 'Resources' sidebar in the next couple of days.