PaulFifield

@Sigalow Gosh Ian - also a life saving decision to go out early that day…

Twenty years ago today, I had an experience that changed my life forever. I decided to visit Thailand for sun and snorkeling with a friend from grad school. On the morning of December 26, 2004, we woke up early in Phuket and booked a tour to Ko Phi Phi. Our guide gave us two options: a speedboat or a ferry. We were poor students and the ferry was five dollars cheaper. I didn't know this was a life-or-death decision. About thirty minutes into the trip, a 40-foot tsunami passed under the boat. On a large boat in deep water, it felt like nothing more than choppy surf. But back at the docks, the story was tragically different. The cockpit of our ferry had a small, grainy television. I still remember the images: entire villages swept away, lives and homes obliterated. The speedboat capsized. When we got back to land, we spent two days in a makeshift field hospital. Even now, it is difficult to put into words how horrible that experience was. So many people lost their children to the ocean. When I returned to school, I was not the same person who had left. The air buzzed with talk of on-campus recruiting: investment banking, consulting, corporate strategy. This was the next step on the treadmill. I couldn't bring myself to do it. So, I made a choice. Instead of interviewing for traditional jobs, I poured myself into building my first company. And that experience, as difficult as it was, proved to be a much better launching pad for what I do today. Young people often ask me for advice—about careers and about life. Here is mine: 1. Sort your career options based on what you will learn, not what you will get paid. Consider this an investment in yourself. 2. Don't settle for a safer path out of fear of failure. You are far more resilient than you think. 3. Life is precious, unpredictable, and often too short. You get to choose to be an optimist or pessimist. Optimists enjoy their time much more. The tsunami taught me to embrace uncertainty, to find purpose in the chaos, and to pursue work that matters. Twenty years later, I try to live every day with that clarity. – Below are photos from the wreckage immediately after the tragedy.

Treat those ears to @RockRadiocouk at midnight when #JonWisbey spins powerful #newsingle #MadamG fm #altrock outfit @proFESSionalOnX on the banging #RockDruid show🎵 Don't sleep - crank it up for an exploration of all things #rock 👇😎 #PMG24 @StashyJon rockradiouk.com

Check out @bcbradio 11pm to hear @turtleshead1962 spin belter of a #newsingle #MadamG fm @proFESSionalOnX on #TheTurtleshead show💥 What's not to like? Treat those ears to a whole host of fresh eclectic cuts 👇😎 #PMG24 #altrock #punk #postpunk bcbradio.co.uk

Huge thx to #PopPunkers for their great #review of @proFESSionalOnX's poignant #newsingle #MadamG which "grabs you w/ its energy & doesn't let go until you end up screaming the chorus"💥A feast for the eyes & ears - check it out👇😎 #PMG24 #punk #altrock bit.ly/3OlQ8z2

#TuneIn to @wfm972 tonight 10pm for #TheRockZone w/ #AnthonyOdell for a great selection of banging #rock tunes 💥 Listen out for thunderous #newsingle #MadamG fm #altrock outfit @proFESSionalOnX amongst the belters 👇😎 #PMG24 @vinylhourswfm wfmradio.org

Big #shoutout to @PopPunkRadio for adding raucous #newsingle #TELEVISION fm @proFESSionalOnX to their station rotation💥 Have a read & check out this banging track then #tunein to poppunkradio.com for more #punk belters👇😎 #PT24 #altrock #newmusic bit.ly/3YHwOkW

#ICYMI Big thx to @TotalRockOnline's #DiamondDave for spinning energetic #newsingle #TELEVISION fm #altrockers @proFESSionalOnX 💥 It's #NewMusicFriday - crank it up & check out a host of banging new tunes on #TheDiamondDaveShow 👇😎 #PT24 bit.ly/3YCeXwR

#TuneIn @6townsradio 9pm as #indie aficionado @carrieskye spins #newsingles #TELEVISION fm #altrock outfit @proFESSionalOnX & #Shreds fm #indiepunk trio #WENCHBand on #TheIndieShow💥 Killer fresh tunes - what's not to like?! 👇😍 @TheWarrenYP #PT24 #WS24 6towns.co.uk

This is so powerful. It’s short. Please have a listen.

2 and desires of the German nation. When you claim 'The British people have had enough', I can tell you you do not represent my views. I am British. And I am ashamed of you and @RishiSunak...

1 @SuellaBraverman have you heard of "Volksgemeinschaft" translating to "people's community.Pushed in the 30s, Hitler and other Nazi leaders portrayed themselves as the only true representatives of the German people, claiming that they alone understood and could fulfill the needs

@GaryLineker @BBCMOTD 1/2 the environment for one of the worst genocides in history to take place. @SuellaBraverman shame on YOU for trying to use this horrific human tragedy to misrepresent what @GaryLineker was saying...

Well, it’s been an interesting couple of days. Happy that this ridiculously out of proportion story seems to be abating and very much looking forward to presenting @BBCMOTD on Saturday. Thanks again for all your incredible support. It’s been overwhelming.

@GaryLineker @BBCMOTD 1/2 You are a total hero for speaking out. I just saw an interview with the vile and frankly unintelligent @SuellaBraverman who talked about how offensive it is for you to compare her words to the Holocaust. I believe that happened in the 40s & the rhetoric of the 30s created..

World’s gone mad. 😂

Superb profile of Tory peer Michelle Mone: an indictment of the Tories, House of Lords, PPE crony capitalism & what passes for 'business'. Well done Camilla Long: "How does someone like this end up in power? A measly criminal inquiry does not seem enough."

Are people like @Jacob_Rees_Mogg just plain thick? Totally lost in the Westminster bubble. @BorisJohnson is HATED in this country for being a cheating lying scumbag. It’s truly over for the @Conservatives of Boris comes back. So obvious!!

@GaryLineker If it didn’t impact so many us so negatively, season 1 of ‘Liz Truss’ would win awards for entertainment..

Is this a dream?

This piece from August, which accused Sunak of “desperate” warnings about what Truss policies could do to the £, is doing the rounds among Conservative MPs, I’m told. Tory source: "Those who only backed Liz for their career are quickly realising the consequences of their actions”

Learning needs to be paired with *doing”.

Behind a successful sales team is a lot of tedious and unsexy work.