‘Tortoise armies’, ‘mansplaining’, and ‘tediocre’ – it can only be Lucy Mangan and the latest new word submissions

Our contributors’ submissions this week range from words plucked from the mires of ancient(ish) history to newborn babes which were nobbut a gleam in modernity’s eye a few short weeks or months ago. Let us proceed chronologically, beginning with tikitaka’s “schiltron”, which derives from the Old… Read More

Living it! Rhiannon Garth Jones has a go at becoming Fluent in 3 Months

Rhiannon Garth Jones is author of the blog What I read today, a compilation of what she thinks might be worth other people reading, and why (with digressions into music and cooking, naturally). She is currently reading Fluent in 3 Months, by Benny Lewis, as part of the 31… Read More

Lucy Mangan’s New Year Rant

Right, 2015 – let’s get a few things out of the way before we begin properly next week. 1. No more “the bub” or “the bubba”, or “Bub” or “Bubba” to refer to your own or any other baby. It’s a baby. You aren’t. Enunciate. 2. And while… Read More

Get that Job in 7 Simple Steps

The job hunt: one of life’s great challenges. It can end in the bitterest defeat or the sweetest victory, but in seven simple steps you can ensure you have the best possible chance of success. The following ways to succeed are taken from Get… Read More

How to make a New Year’s Resolution… and actually keep it

The following is taken from fluentin3months.com, by Benny Lewis, and is part of HarperCollins’ 31 Days of Inspiration (#31daysuk). The book, Fluent in 3 Months, is available at 31% discount when you use promo code 31DAYS on collins.co.uk. Every year around January 1st, my inbox… Read More

My Story, Your Passion – Benny Lewis’s inspirational story of how he became a globe-trotting polyglot (part 2)

Taken from the introduction to Fluent in 3 Months, by Benny Lewis, available on collins.co.uk at 30% discount when you use promo code 31DAYS. Read part 1.   Give Yourself Goose Bumps   So how do you develop this passion, if extrinsic benefits have been clouding your… Read More

17 inspirational quotes to help you reach your goals this year

As part of HarperCollins’ 31 Days of Inspiration (#31daysuk), we’ve collected 17 inspirational quotes from some hugely successful people who know what they’re talking about. Each of the quotes features in one of the 7 Simple Steps books, which offer fun new ways to improve your business skills, whether you’re… Read More

My Story, Your Passion – Benny Lewis’s inspirational story of how he became a globe-trotting polyglot (part 1)

Are you thinking of learning a language this year? If so, there’s no one better to advise you than polyglot language learning blogger, Benny Lewis. The following is taken from the introduction to Fluent in 3 Months, by Benny Lewis, as part of HarperCollins’ 31 Days of Inspiration (#31daysuk). Fluent… Read More

What does Lucy Mangan think of the ‘tarpaulin revolution’, ‘wig warmers’ and ‘bulletproof coffee’?

2014 has been the year of – as RobertG submits – the “tarpaulin revolution“. This refers of course to the likes of Occupy Wall Street and other similar, splinter (shred?) groups that have sprung up over the months on both sides of the Atlantic to protest against various forms… Read More