‘The Golden Rule’ and Credibility

Reputation is something we are all concerned about, and not least in management. Indeed, a lot of management literature reflects this almost universal desire to be seen as reputable, as the shelves of any bookshop will show. This literature is usually driven by the simple policy that having a good reputation is good for our […]

Obama: can his actions match his rhetoric?

We can all remember the last U.S. Presidential elections when commentators daily compared Barrack Obama and John McCain in not only their policies, but also their speaking styles. Although George W. Bush was not running in the election, the comparisons were extended to him as well. Remarks were made about Bush’s many grammatical mistakes and […]

‘Constantine’ by Paul Stephenson, Quercus, 2011

Just after Christmas I enjoyed reading a biography of Constantine, the 4th Century Roman Emperor. Reading biographies is usually interesting, because they challenge the reader to come to terms with the ‘great man’ theory. This theory was first introduced by the Scottish writer Thomas Carlyle, who held that history could be read solely by the […]