10th May 2026

Opening Reflection 

There’s a lot of talk these days about mental health.

In fact, sometimes it feels as though having a mental health issue has almost become a modern-day fashion accessory. Now before people jump on me, let me be clear:

I am not dismissing genuine mental illness.

There are people who suffer terribly, and those struggles should absolutely be taken seriously.

But I do wonder whether we are now sometimes confusing the normal ups and downs of life with something more serious.

Is it really true that people are mentally struggling more than they did 50 years ago — despite all the advantages and comforts of modern living?

Or have we simply become less resilient in dealing with discomfort, stress, and uncertainty?

The Entrepreneur’s Mind

Now, I can only speak from my own experience.

And I can tell you this with absolute certainty:

Entrepreneurship is mentally exhausting.

Running a business is relentless.

The stress.
The uncertainty.
The responsibility.
The constant decision-making.

It never stops.

And I’ll be honest — it isn’t a life for everyone.

If you are emotionally fragile, entrepreneurship can absolutely tip you over the edge.

Even I — and I regard myself as very resilient — have days where I question whether I still have what it takes.

Because the pressure is endless.

Everyone Needs an Outlet

The key, I believe, is finding a way to release the pressure.

I recently read that Winston Churchill referred to his dark periods as his “black dogs.” Today we might call that depression, anxiety, or simply feeling overwhelmed.

What fascinated me was how he dealt with it.

He built brick walls.
He painted.
He created.

He found an outlet.

And I think that’s incredibly important.

Because pressure without release eventually becomes destructive.

The Modern Disease: Noise

For me, one of the greatest challenges of modern life is noise.

Not just literal noise — but mental noise.

The television.
The news cycle.
Social media.
WhatsApp.
Emails.
Opinions.
Fear.

We are constantly absorbing other people’s anxieties, other people’s outrage, other people’s panic.

And if you’re not careful, it overwhelms you.

I genuinely believe that one of the greatest acts of self-preservation today is learning how to shut the noise out.

My Sacred Ritual

So I’ve developed my own ritual.

The first two hours of my morning are sacred.

No phone.
No radio.
No news.
No outside world.

Just me and my thoughts.

I allow myself to drift mentally before the arena of the day begins.

Because once the phone comes on, the world starts demanding things from you.

Messages. Problems. Decisions. Emergencies.

That quiet time is my way of grounding myself before the chaos begins.

And I’ve come to realise that protecting your peace is not laziness.

It’s survival.

Resilience vs Fragility

I sometimes worry that we are raising a generation that has not been taught how to cope with discomfort.

Life is difficult.
Business is difficult.
Relationships are difficult.

And while compassion matters, resilience matters too.

Because without resilience, every setback feels catastrophic.

One of the greatest gifts you can develop is the ability to endure difficult periods without collapsing emotionally.

Not because you suppress your feelings — but because you understand that difficult moments pass.

The Importance of Perspective

When I look back on my own life — dyslexia, rejection, cancer, business struggles — I realise something important:

Most of the things that once felt overwhelming eventually became chapters.

Not endings.

And perhaps that’s the perspective age gives you.

You realise that bad days are not bad lives.

Closing Reflection

So this week I’ve been thinking a lot about mental health, resilience, and the importance of protecting your inner world.

The modern world constantly competes for our attention.

But peace rarely comes from adding more noise.

Sometimes peace comes from subtraction.

Turning things off.
Stepping back.
Sitting quietly with your own thoughts.

Because if you can learn to master the noise around you, you stand a far better chance of mastering the noise within you.

Onwards.