რასაცა გასცემ, შენია; რაც არა, დაკარგულია

“That which we give makes us richer, that which is hoarded is lost” wrote medieval Georgian poet Shota Rustaveli.

I assume he wrote these words in a book of some sort. But I read them in a bit of graffiti in a damp underpass in Tbilisi and had to look it up.

By sharing we build trust with others, and make them more inclined to share with us. It’s a principle that I recognised immediately. By sharing what we know, we encourage others to see and respect our expertise.

I don’t imagine the 12th century poet had digital consulting services in mind when he wrote those words, but the give-to-get tactic probably lands me more work than any other. Wise, was Rustaveli.

Some things I did this week

For the first half of the week I was on holiday. And for the most part I actually managed to do that. For the first few years Lithos Partners was really just Jonathan and I, with occasional inputs from freelancers. But over the past two years we’ve scaled so we’re managing bigger and more complex projects, and that means building out teams that plan and deliver by themselves. There have been some growing pains but I think we’ve cracked it. I left work in Jon’s capable hands, and that of our brilliant and talented team who I know and trust to crack on in my absence.

Which meant for the first time in years I took a holiday while work was still happening – and not just in a lull between clients – in the full confidence things would be just fine without me.

And they were.

I’ve landed back right in the middle of a busy period and some incoming deadlines. We’re taking a ‘divide and conquer’ approach, with Jon handling one big project and me the other, with smaller projects split between us. We’ve got this.

Non-work things

Like I said, I went on holiday. Specifically, I did this tour of Georgia with solo travel specialists Flashpack, followed by a few days on my own at the end to cross the border to Armenia (by my count the 73rd country I’ve visited).

Armenia in pics:

This was my third trip with Flashpack, who aim is to bring together like-minded professionals in their 30s and 40s, providing seamless itineraries that include everything from local cultural experiences to luxury accommodations.

The appeal lies in the convenience: for well-travelled people to explore somewhere new without worrying about logistics, safety, or navigating new destinations on their own. Everything is taken care of, ensuring a stress-free experience where participants can simply show up and enjoy the trip. 

While a normal person might schedule an activity on every other day of a holiday, leaving time to relax in-between, on a Flashpack trip there’ll be two or even three such activities every day, followed by a group dinner. On day 2 the guide kicked off a hike with an announcement that, being 9km and mostly uphill, we expected it to take four hours. We were done in 2:28. A guided sightseeing tour would finish and there would be a car waiting to take us to a cooking class, then a spa.

Inevitably these adventures attract a particular type. This (very funny) piece in the NYT is an all-too-fair summary. I am not ashamed to admit I am exactly That Type. And so was everyone else. The group WhatsApp would put the organisational skills of a FTSE 100 board to shame.

It’s not for the feint hearted but for those who want the thrill of solo travel with a safety net and a group of potential new friends, Flashpack delivers exactly what it promises.

I got back home on Thursday simultaneously exhausted and raring to do it all over again.

Over the weekend I saw 80s indie rock poptimists Redd Kross down at PAARD Poppodium in The Hague. A much underrated band who’ve been going as long as I’ve been alive, they put on a charming little show. I felt bad for them as it was very sparely attended with barely 75 people in the audience. I danced enough for at least three people.

Last night I caught the Sundance award-winning film from Irish band Kneecap. Raw, dark and politically charged, it’s a fictionalised and funny take on the rise of the hip-hop trio from Belfast. The ‘fillum’ blends some gritty social commentary on language and identity with a riotous, drug-fuelled coming-of-age story, with the trio themselves playing the leads. It’s a vibrant and rebellious reflection on the preservation of the Irish language and had me both laughing out loud and bopping along to the band’s bangers.

Connections

My visit to Tbilisi gave me a chance to finally catch up with Charlie Southwell. Charlie is one of those people I have known of for years and yet somehow never crossed paths with. We have various friends in common – who oddly aren’t even friends with each other – and even worked in the same place for a time but a few months apart.

Unsurprisingly Charlie was a very good egg. We had a lovely long chat in a café overlooking Freedom Square where we talked about marketing, SharePoint, AI, all the people we know in common and the forthcoming Georgian elections.

What I’m reading

I’ve just started on A History Of The Roman Empire in 21 Women. An attempt to revisit the history of Rome through the lens of the other 51% who are rarely mentioned in mainstream history books. I’m only a chapter in and I like it already.

Travel

This week I’m off to Istanbul for – surprisingly – the very first time. I’m speaking at the Global Marketing Summit about the importance of internal comms in employee advocacy.

I’ve got a day off on Friday to explore the city so please send me your top tips (and top eats… can’t wait to get stuck into that Turkish food!).