What’s the difference between a billion and a trillion? We have an intuitive sense of the value of money when it comes in amounts we encounter in everyday life. The sudden loss or gain of £5, £500, £5000 is an event we can imagine and feel. But once we get into large numbers, we lose… Read more »
A big part of my work is helping people prepare for career-changing interviews. When we start, by far the most common self-criticism is “I have a tendency to waffle”. The instinctive response is to go for safety – to give direct answers and back them up with reasons. Q: Do you think we should we… Read more »
“But this is a weak point. I definitely shouldn’t include it. Then hopefully it won’t come up in Q&A”. We have an amazing capacity for optimism when it comes to secrecy. Rather than acknowledge a weakness and present it in context, we often prefer to entrust the success of our endeavours to silence, charm and… Read more »
The US government has issued several corrections of its original story about Osama bin Laden’s final moments. Crucial differences include that a woman was not used as a human shield, and that bin Laden himself was unarmed. The BBC’s Mark Mardell, regretting the gap between the two accounts, says “there is no mileage in misleading… Read more »