Peter Cook's Blog

I read a great post by Richard Branson where he discussed how Leadership Lessons Begin At Home. He invited people to share their story of learning from family members in a competition to win a copy of his new book “The Virgin Way”. I won the competition, met Richard and subsequently wrote for Virgin for five years and delivered exclusive events for the brand. Richard gave me an exclusive interview for my 8th book as a result of all this work over many years. Here is the story that started the journey:

I was lucky to have a mother and father who taught me different things. My mum was the effusive, sometimes brash “screw it let’s do it” type, whilst my father was a reflective more socratic and spiritual figure. I did not have so much of an opportunity to learn from them as I was born when my mum was 45 and my Dad 67 – so they disappeared off this mortal coil in my 20’s and early 30’s – my mother used to tell people I was a virgin birth to explain the extraordinary circumstances of my late arrival, but then she was prone to exaggeration !!

My Dad – probably around 1910 when he was around 20 years old – Champion Cyclist of Kent

My dad worked in Chatham Dockyard as a fitter and turner for 50 years and retired when he was 69 – he was shortly “headhunted” in today’s speak for a job in The Acorn Shipyard in Rochester, where he used to cycle 6 days a week (around 8 miles) until he was forced to retire by a bout of bronchitis when he was 79. I learned many things from him:

Curiosity – Tom was an inveterate tinkerer. By day he made prop shafts for submarines. In the evening people from our area would bring round watches and other items which needed fixing. He delighted in taking watches apart in the backyard on his bench and figuring out how they worked so he could put them back together again. I learned the joy of curiosity and figuring out how complex systems work through “helping” him. I subsequently transferred this quality into my life working in the metaphysical world of business leadership rather than the physical world of engineering.

Preparation – I could not comprehend the sheer difference in scale of Tom’s day job of making prop shafts and his night time hobby of fixing watches. Yet both tasks required precision and patience (OK, I have not mastered patience yet!! -:) When I was about 7 years old Tom took me to work down the Dockyard to show me what he did for a living. I recall that he invested considerable time in setting up the machine and then hardly touched it from then on. The young apprentices used to call him “Sleepy Tom”, as he could often be found in a somnambulistic state (aka sleeping) whilst his prop shafts took their 12 hour journey into the sea. They would sometimes try to throw cherries into his mouth as he appeared to doze on the 12 hour shifts. Yet, despite their attempts to choke him, every prop shaft he made turned out absolutely straight. This is not a oneupmanship tale of “My dad was the best fitter and turner in the Dockyard”. It is simply a story of the so-called 10 000 hours effect. Tom had done this job for so long that he had what business gurus called “mastery” – in other words he could almost do it literally in his sleep. I think he knew the exact sound of the machine just before it needed adjusting – he would give it the tiniest of tweaks and then return to his dream state, pipe in mouth, whereas the apprentices would keep fiddling and overcompensate as a result. Preparation is the mother of high performance and I’ve taken this lesson into my professional life as a business person when designing client events and in my hobby as a musician.

My Dad bought me a Beatles’ guitar when I was five – fortunately it only had 4 strings which made it 33% easier to play than John Lennon or George Harrison’s!!

Let it be – At 79, my Dad could see that I had different hopes and passions – I was crazy about science and music. The greatest gift he could give me was NOT to assume I would want to follow him down his chosen lifestyle and career. He always encouraged me to be myself and follow my interests. So many fathers attempt to imprint their children with their lifestyle, careers and dreams, but I think he was old and wise enough to realise that he needed to let me be. I recall that my mum said towards the end of her life that “they decided to treat me differently” to their other children as I was the last of the line, letting me find my way in the world. I never quite found out what she meant by this. I don’t think Tom understood my love of science or music but he was strangely comfortable with not understanding things. The concept of encouraging others to find their passions rather than attempting to imprint them with mine has stayed with me to this day.

In 1996, I wrote this dedication in my first book Best Practice Creativity:

“For my father, Tom, who was an inveterate tinkerer and taught me the art of curiosity. In the hope that my two sons, Thomas and James will find as much fortune in learning”

Thank you Mum and Dad – So many questions I still want to ask you

Thomas Cook 1891 – 1980 with my mum Doris 1913 – 1991 perhaps on their wedding day in our garden in Gillingham, Kent – I want to thank you for letting me be myself

Postscript – it seems that this entry won the prize to meet Sir Richard Branson – I could hardly believe it!

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Our book “Leading Innovation, Creativity and Enterprise” with Bloomsbury is available, featuring the interview with Richard Branson.

For leadership development programmes spread over 6-24 months get in touch with us via Human Dynamics.

Contact us for exceptional keynotes and longer masterclasses that blend high level concepts on business leadership with parallels from the world of music via The Academy of Rock.

I have been invited to become a school governor. It reminded me that I was one some years ago, having been invited by the head to ensure that the meetings were run properly (Chair of Governors was a nice but incompetent fool who just wanted to bring all his builders’ mates in to do construction jobs). I was there to improve the quality of decisions and focus on the children’s needs more than that of the Governors’ networks.

Alongside the role, I offered teachers some INSET days on teaching and learning based on my role as an Open University MBA tutor. To my surprise, I was told that they were not taught much about how people learn as part of their training …

An odd request came from the Headmistress one summer. She had arranged a summer school to help children pass their 11+ exams and had engaged poets, artists and so on to ensure an immersion experience, to ensure the kids did not mind giving their holidays up to go to school. But all the external people had wanted to be paid and their was no money available. She asked me for ideas. I suggested that we end the week with a songwriting and performance contest where the ‘content’ would be the smartest strategies to pass their exams from the week. To my surprise, she agreed to my suggestion and I set about arranging a support team. To my even greater surprise, the BBC asked if they could cover the event (see below for BBC Breakfast piece with David Sillito). Our “School of Rock” predated the film of the same name. It was a great deal of fun. To my much greater surprise the Headmistress told me a year later that this year group outperformed all expectations in the 11+ exams. She pointed to the fact that the degree of peer support and camaraderie was noticeably different in the year after the event when compared with other year groups. She saw that the “School of Rock” experience was pivotal in achieving that !!

To harness the power of music in your enterprise get in touch via email at mailto:peter@academy-of-rock.co.uk

Fast Company is the world’s leading business media brand, with an editorial focus on innovation in technology, leadership, world changing ideas, creativity, and design. Written for and about the most progressive business leaders, Fast Company inspires readers to think expansively, lead with purpose, embrace change, and shape the future of business. 

Steven Melendez carefully extracted insights from 30 years of performing in rock bands, melted with corporate consultancy experience and a solid platform of knowledge built through teaching MBAs in creativity in his article on Punk Rock and Business. His interview was wide ranging and deep, which he then compiled into a comprehensive piece for Fast Company entitled Punk’s not dead – it’s in the boardroom.

Read our micro book on Punk Rock and People Management here. Get in touch for your next corporate event.

Check this new article out on Runrig at Scottish Bylines.

If music is to mean anything in our lives it must have a root. Sure, we also consume music as aural wallpaper in shopping centres, at the gym, at leisure and so on, but music which stays with us often has something more to it than just a backdrop to modern living. There is a long history of music that reflects cultures, and another lineage that reflects protest and politics. Arch exponents of the art form include Joan Baez, Billy Bragg, Nina Simone, Pink Floyd, U2, Billie Holiday and, of course, Big Country, who I wrote of previously.

I came across Tony Michaelides recently and we got on so well that I decided to conduct an interview with him.  He has just released a book called Moments that Rock, based on his experience of working with Class A Rock Stars such as U2, The Stone Roses, David Bowie, New Order, The Police, Depeche Mode, Simply Red, Bob Marley, Massive Attack, REM, Matchbox Twenty, The Pixies, Elvis Costello, Genesis, Johnny Cash, Whitney Houston, Annie Lennox, Tom Petty, Peter Gabriel…..and many more. 

We now offer a unique combination of our talents for corporate keynotes, events and masterclasses around the world.

Contact us to discuss your needs at peter@academy-of-rock.co.uk

Tony has long been one of the UK’s foremost record promoters and undoubtedly one of the best that U2 has had the pleasure of working with.

~Paul McGuinness, manager of U2 (1978-2013)

Tony has seen more of the music industry from the inside than almost anyone else I know. Working for various record companies, his own promotions business, and artist management has given him a deep insight into the machinations of the music business. His success stories are many, but just ask any member of U2 about Tony and they will tell you of the crucial role he played in getting them heard around the UK.

~Mark Radcliffe, BBC Radio and TV presenter and author

We wrote and recorded this piece of music for the lead presenter Faisal Rajput of XIN TV in Pakistan to head their news, politics and current affairs programme. He had contacted me about our work in politics and I created a piece of music for the programme in my basement studio. XIN TV is the first Pakistani and Chinese collaboration in broadcasting. Here is the introduction to the programme.

Get in touch via The Academy of Rock for bespoke music production to fit your TV / radio or online media.

Join us this Wednesday on ZOOM at WorldWide Wednesday for a masterclass on changing minds about Europe and Brexit.

Technology enables us to do amazing things.  One such amazing thing was an album I was asked to collaborate on, featuring musicians from several continents and members of Tuff Darts, Mod Fun, TV Toy, Joe Jackson, Captain Storm, Bram Tchaikovsky, Bon Jovi, Greg Abate, The Royals, The Punster, Ghost Walks, Puzzle Monkey, The Larks, and Bill Nelson’s Red Noise. 

The album “Steve’s Theme Park” was masterminded by Steve Peer in Miami and produced by Jeff Crossman who had the patience of a saint in bringing together so many diverse contributions.

Read the story of this Herculean enterprise, with many transferable lessons for people trying to do complex things across continents, such as:

1.       Global collaboration relies on strong leadership and direction.  Steve provided this from the outset.

2.       Global collaboration relies on excellent systems of co-ordination.  Jeff provided this essential mechanism without which we would not have succeeded.

3.       Global collaboration relies on give and take behaviours on the part of the team involved.  Guided by Steve’s leadership, the various experts were able to give of their best.

A couple of the songs from Steve’s Theme Park are included here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyEPkEIxYCc&ab_channel=Steve%27sThemePark

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrCE0-KMteg&ab_channel=Steve%27sThemePark

Check out The Peer Reviews on You Tube – classic rock tracks distilled and dissected by Steve Peer and myself.

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Check out this article about Tom Hagler, author of “We could be … Bowie and his Heroes”. Tom and I offer superb participative masterclasses about business lessons from Bowie:

Bowie and the art of business leadership

Major Tom Peter “Kooks”

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I managed to snatch a mini interview with the legend that is Jah Wobble after a two hour performance recently. The video also captures some of the performance that covers jazz, dub, reggae, punk, experimental music – what a complete joy to watch:

Wobble gained his name after Sid Vicious misheard his name John Wardle. He had a period as a station announcer on London’s Underground where he once broadcast “I used to be somebody. I repeat, I used to be somebody” over the tannoy system. It seems that he learned some of his stage skills from this period of his life as much as from musical performance. Having played with a diverse cast of music legends, from Public Image Ltd to Brian Eno, Sinead O’Connor, Can and members of U2 and one of my own local colleagues Clea Llewellyn, he has a supremely talented band in the form of The Invaders of the Heart. You can see some of their skills in this video:

Find all our interviews with music celebrities at The Academy of Rock.

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Check this video out by Tibor Shanto, award winning author, speaker and B2B sales execution specialist from Toronto, Canada:

Check Tibor Shanto’s weekly podcasts out and follow him on Twitter.