How a chairman, a movie star and a secret made my week
Do you use your Sunday to look back over the past five or six days and take stock? Or are you one of those look-ahead types who ploughs on and does little in the way of a weekly audit? Or are you something of a seventh-day swinger and find moments for reflection while also eagerly entering plans and lists in the diary for the weeks and months ahead? To stay crisp, I like to play back the week on Saturdays and Sundays and recall the high points (and lows), who was brilliant, what was tasty and where was worth documenting and might demand a return visit. Most importantly, I ask: “What did I learn and who taught me?”
Fellowship
On Tuesday morning, I had the honour of sharing the stage with Tilda Swinton. The venue was the Capitol Theatre in Singapore and in the audience were several hundred students from universities across the city-state. I was moderating and Ms Swinton was there to talk about her career, new projects, the creative process and to take questions from the students. Best of all, it was a trip down memory lane as she reminded me about our days in London in the early 1990s, the people we hung out with, the clubs we frequented and the wonderful jobs we did for very little money. About halfway through our talk, Tilda hit upon the importance of fellowship and how we’ve somehow landed in a place where the individual and personal brand has become far more important than being part of a troupe or team. It was a simple observation but refreshingly on point. “Aren’t we motivated by the process and the people we work with? And the people we return to work with?” Tilda asked. “It’s about fellowship.” This definitely struck a chord with the students and it has stayed with me all week.
Chairman’s flight
On Thursday it was another talk – this time I was answering the questions on stage at The Foreign Correspondents’ Club in Hong Kong. Before taking up my position, I was chatting to one of the club’s leaders and he mentioned the beauty of flying around Asia from HK and catching the chairman’s flight to Tokyo, Singapore and Jakarta. Chairman’s flight? I’d never heard the term. And given my card says chairman, right below my name, why wasn’t I aware of this service, concept or secret society? “The chairman’s flight is a weekday departure that leaves midmorning and means that you can have a gentle start, do a little work in the lounge, have a drink and lunch onboard and maybe there’s even a little nap,” explained the club grandee. “And given these are all three-to-four hour sectors, the meeting at your destination is most likely drinks and dinner.” I’ve now instructed my travel agent, Jill, that chairman’s flights are the only way to go.
Secrets are important
I just landed in Tokyo and I’m meeting my friend Noriko for dinner at the same restaurant that we sampled two weeks ago. It’s hidden away up a staircase on a third floor in Hiroo. It’s open late and the kitchen will cook up pretty much any classic dish that you fancy. The crowd is exclusively Japanese and it feels a bit like Tokyo circa 1998. Heaven. The lesson here is that personal connections are everything, as this semi-secret establishment needs to know its patrons before allowing them to book. Not only does this keep the tourists out, it also creates a certain kind of intimacy between staff and patrons. I’m looking forward to going back for thirds.
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