Burnout and the Mobilisation of Energy

Burnout and the Mobilisation of Energy is a radical new book. Its main objective is to help working individuals or organisations to get out of burnout and keep out of it. Further, it helps them to activate or mobilise energy.

If you are burnt out or on the slippery slope to burnout, this book will transform you. If your organisation is blocked in terms of energy, this book can transform your organisation.

It is based on research, theory and practice. It clearly describes what burnout is and what it is not. It is not depression, stress, depersonalisation or anxiety. It is, however, based on a key symptom: an extreme form of energy depletion.

Two concepts explain the core findings: a Gestalt concept called an ‘introject’, and another that Carl Jung called ‘enantiodromia’. These elaborate terms help us identify what burnout is, what causes it and how to get out of it.

The book also focuses on mobilisation of energy in the organisation. Using a psychological framework, it illustrates what happens when organisations get psychologically mixed up. This leads to a feeling of spinning wheels and crossed wires.

Burst Your Bubble

When your dreams become bigger than the ability to achieve them,

When your heart, body, and soul, feel numb,

When you are lost in the darkness, suffering, failure, and regret,

When you feel like the world for you is in huge debt,

Burst the bubble that has you imprisoned,

Seek me out in the book, and every answer will be given,

I will help you see the truth that lies beneath the mask that we wear,

Choose this book, and you shall see what you had lost in despair.

Butterflies in My Soup

With most of her friends married, Sylvia at 23 can find no good reason for turning down her boyfriend’s proposal of marriage. In her heart, though, she knows that she longs to be free to see more of the world before settling down to what she feels would be a humdrum life of a domestic city in the early 1960s. Having been dissuaded from accepting a teaching job in the USA, she continues her quest for an overseas posting until one day, she finds exactly what she's been looking for. A boarding school in Lushoto, a township in the Usambara Mountains, Tanganyika (Tanzania) needs a teacher.

With scant information about her destination, other than that African violets grow wild in the Usambara, Sylvia flies off to East Africa leaving her anxious family and a fiancé whose determination to wait for two years for her will be severely tested.

Nothing could prepare Sylvia for the amazing life that she was to lead, with experiences, friendships, and challenges that she could never have imagined, and with memories that she would cherish and try to recapture on a return visit many years later.

Café de Flore

Addressing the escalating global issue of mental health and suicide, Café de Flore is a serious book that provides inspiration and relief to those caught in the net of despair. Identifying the critical error made by mankind over the centuries. Café de Flore points towards an escape from the madness of the human condition.

An easily digestible form of philosophy, written with graceful authority, the book takes the reader on a journey that captures the sublime messages contained in the wreck of literature, poetry and prose.

Dostoevsky once said: “It takes something more than intelligence to act intelligently.” What more does it take?

Encouraging the world to stop thinking, to entertain a degree of madness, to live with passion and to laugh more. This book provides a fresh perspective on the perceived struggles and difficulties we find ourselves trapped in, in this sad and lonely world.

Called to Serve and Protect

How does a farm boy brought up on an isolated farm with no electricity, or running water supply, leaving school at fifteen with no academic qualifications, have a successful career in the police force and become an overseas police adviser? John describes his motivation to serve and protect, and takes you through his police career, including when he climbed the headstock of a disused colliery to talk down a disturbed teenager, had a convicted killer hold a knife to his throat, and took a loaded shotgun out of the hands of an aggressive teenager. He enumerates his progression through the ranks and describes an occasion when he refused to obey an order from his Chief Constable, which probably cost him a promotion.

Post-retirement, he worked for a private security company involved in the escorting of prisoners to courts and prisons and describes having to spend three days in the witness box at an inquest into the death of a prisoner in transit to prison. As an overseas police adviser sitting in a restaurant in Addis Ababa with his wife, a colleague and his wife, John saw a hand grenade come to a standstill just inches away from his legs and he expected to die, but miraculously survived.

Flown back to the UK for treatment he had his moments of fame, appearing on TV news and on the Big Breakfast show on Channel 4. Attending a presentation function at the Café Royal, he sat next to Lois Maxwell, the original Miss Moneypenny and the lady on whom her character was based.

Campaigning for Socialism: Memoirs of Max and Margaret Morris

Equality of educational provision became one of the objectives of the Labour Party exactly a century ago. Vigorous campaigning by the teachers’ trade unions and the Socialist Educational Association led to a period of progress in the 1960s to the early-1980s, but this was later undermined. Today the economic conditions and educational plight of British working class children are a disgrace and class divisions are greater than ever. For many years Max was a key figure in these battles and his memoirs provide a clear picture of events and the political forces involved. Readers must judge whether they provide an explanation for the lack of progress or could serve as a guide for the future.

Both Max and Margaret were active in wider socialist campaigning. Max was a party loyalist whereas Margaret only stayed within a party while in agreement with its key policies. She was a Labour Party activist and Council candidate in the 1950s but left over the failure to support CND. Re-joining later, she left over the war in Iraq. She had come to realise that First Past the Post undermines democracy.

The main targets of Margaret’s campaigning were housing problems and widening access to Higher Education. Max and Margaret shared objectives and actively assisted each other in their campaigns but did not always agree about the route forward. So their memoirs provide two perspectives on past events.

Can't Hear Yourself Think

Graham Dalby’s book opens inside Windsor Castle at the ‘Ball of The Century’ in 2000, when he drops so many names it’s hard to keep up. He then takes us through his precariously dangerous childhood from Nigeria, Singapore, and Hong Kong, where he served for a short time as a Police Inspector. The remainder of the book is Dalby’s fast-paced life of Classical Music and Jazz and Swing and is a case-book study on how to manage to quaff Champagne belonging to the rich and famous.

The style is old school Wodehouse/Waugh but the historical interpolations keep the reader in the realms of reality and fact. An incredible story of great anecdotes, laughter, and some tears – but mostly Music, Champagne and Laughter.

Captured by Childhood Memories

I always wondered what kind of people specialised in psychology and neurology. I was very curious to know how a psychiatrist lived. Why did it first occur to him to study this field even though he knew well how difficult it is to deal with mental patients? One could even be physically and verbally attacked by them and be subject to abuse.

To begin with, I was interested in knowing about all the stages of Dr Pashmi’s life. However, his childhood was more appealing to me, as I knew that childhood experiences of joy and sorrow influence the sensitive soul of the child and make him respond to them at a later time. Negative aspects hurt and the hidden anger inside surfaces severely. Newton’s Third Law states: “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Similarly, the child throws back all anger, events and suppressions done to him in life to the society.

Upon retirement, Dr Pashmi’s patients numbered 22118. It was a question to me to know where he got the energy from and what his incentive was to devote all his time to treating his patients. In addition, what was the reason for his becoming one of the famous specialists of Hamburg, Germany? How did he manage to overcome all his life problems while studying and improve himself?

Car Boot Diamond

This book is about a true story of heartache. Betrayal in the worst possible way. A young girl to an adult woman’s disrespect for her mother because of being put in care. Lessons that had to be learnt the hard way. Of true love for her mum which came through more heartache, her mum losing her life savings, family and health, more than anyone could deal with.

The author and her family did deal with it and discovered true love before it was too late. Only then did they discover a diamond after having it in her possession for over 32 years, bought for only £10 and sold for over £540,000. A 26.27-carat diamond. A diamond that went on to sell at Sotheby’s top lot. A real-life Only Fools and Horses story. A true fairytale gift of fate and karma, but most of all, love.

Caravanning and Camping in Australia

From the vast deserts of the interior, to the tropical north and sandy beaches of the coasts. Alpine regions and rugged mountains, Australia has such a varied landscape. So, what better way is there to really experience it, other than by road. This book gives the road tripper all they need to know to set up their journey for a safe and memorable experience. What to take, what to avoid, when to go. A good starting point for anyone that likes going on an adventure.

Caring for Cancer, the Real Journey

I was married to my best friend for 12 years before he was given the diagnosis of stage 4 gastroesophageal cancer in 2018. He passed away in 2019 after a life-changing journey.

This is my uncensored real-life journey of caring for someone with cancer and how I coped with the emotions and expectations surrounding bereavement and grief.

It is written using real thoughts and feelings and based on factual events. It provides a raw insight into the pure emotions experienced on a day-to-day basis and how, ultimately, I used those experiences to forge my way through bereavement and onto an inspirational journey of finding hope, encouragement and a renewed lust for life.

In my journey, I sadly lost the love of my life but I also gained a new outlook on my future by finding a way to create a ‘new normal’ despite my life changing. If you are going through a similar situation, I hope this book will show you that you are not alone and that the thoughts and feelings you go through are very real. I also hope it shows that despite the darkest of days, it is possible to remember the ones we lose with courage and a determination to turn something so difficult into a life of purpose and hope.

This book offers a real-life insight into the cancer experience from the carer’s perspective. However you read this book, whether you be a carer yourself, a family member, a friend or a medical professional, it can offer a profoundly inspiring and unique insight.

Caring for the Elderly and Those with Dementia

With over 10 years’ experience working as a carer for elderly people, B. Mack decided to write this book to share her knowledge. She has cared mainly for elderly people who were diagnosed with dementia.  

This book contains useful information that will help families, friends and caregivers to deal with their loved ones who may be going through various stages of dementia, from early stages to end stage dementia. With the help of this book you can set up a good environment for them, communicate effectively with them, learn their behavioural patterns, help navigate through changes in appetite and cope with behavioural changes. The useful tips and tried methods will help equip you when faced with challenging times like end-of-life care, dealing with abuse and so much more.

For those who are torn between nursing homes, rest homes or in-home care, there are some advantages and disadvantages listed that you need to take into consideration to help you make informed decisions.  

The coping methods suggested here come from the author’s own experience. Now they might be helpful to someone else too.