Friday quiz time with renowned author, journalist and political commentator Grace Blakeley in the hot seat.

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businesswithoutbullshit.me

Welcome to this week's a business or bullshit quiz with renowned author,

journalist, and political commentator, Grace Blakely, in the hot seat.

It's been fantastic conversation, Grace.

Are you ready for a little bit of a game?

I'm so ready.

Okay, we're gonna say something and you gotta say whether it's business

or bullshit, um, that's it, you gotta make a choice, you can...

Discuss your options as you wish.

I've explained it pretty badly, but I think you've got the gist.

Yeah, I get it.

Oh, de cue the music and we're off.

Office nap pods.

Oh my god, yes.

A million times yes.

I used to fall asleep all the time when I had to work in an office and often I would

just go and lock myself in the loo and just fall asleep with my head against the cubicle.

Especially because they now reckon that if you have a nap during the day you're less likely to get dementia.

I have naps all the time when I'm writing.

Maybe they have to be in a sort of public space that people know you're napping.

Otherwise, otherwise it's like, are they having sex or are they doing an I.

V.

a little hammock.

Hammocks.

Hammocks in a, you know.

Thing.

Almost.

Joint area.

Or just light up, you know.

Grace is currently napping.

She has been napping for seven hours, sixty four minutes.

Shall we wake her?

Yes!

Right, on that bomber, uh, mandatory office birthday cakes.

Mandatory.

Oh, you haven't worked in an office.

No, I mean, I have worked in offices.

On people's birthdays, you have to bring in a cake.

You have, you have to bring in a cake.

Yeah, it's fucking ridiculous.

That's bizarre.

I'm trying to get it, oh Christ, I'm getting, I'm trying to make sure we just give the birthdays off here.

Yeah, that's a great idea, why not?

I mean, it's much for much, this is just giving another day's holiday, but it means actually

you're not, because it's at the weekend sometimes, so it's actually for a business, it's

less But it's just nice to say to someone you don't want your birthday and you don't have

to give a fucking mandatory office gig by running to Greg's when I'm really busy anyway.

Oh god, yeah.

At like 10am.

Fuck that, it's bullshit.

Actually, you do need to answer, I've answered for you.

Where are we going?

Oh, I think that's bullshit.

Yeah, I completely agree.

Business plans.

Ooh, interesting.

Um, I mean, I think that's probably business, like you need a plan.

Plan beat no plan.

Yeah.

Office dogs, as discussed.

I like it.

I think business.

Ballpark figures.

Uh, that's very interesting.

Hasn't I got it?

Uh, ballpark figures.

I think bullshit.

There's so many ways to get it wrong and, yeah.

And you can slightly change the view for small, small, uh, that's a good answer.

LinkedIn.

I don't even have LinkedIn, I think bullshit.

I just, some of the stuff I see on LinkedIn, I'm just like, Dear God.

Universal basic income.

Ooh, interesting.

So, I like the idea, but I don't necessarily think that we should be doing it by just giving people a pot of money.

People should look up this idea of universal basic services, which is rather than saying, let's give

everyone a bit of money, we should be investing in making sure that everyone has Access to a set

of services that allow them to survive regardless of whether or not they are actually, you know,

working and potentially having those like as based in the community where everyone's getting involved.

And you can kind of see the, the effects of that.

The effects that I, I, it's a slightly different idea, but I always like the idea of a golden pass.

'cause my wife's a GP works in a and e and stuff and they used to get canteen meals.

They used to get loads of stuff.

Yeah.

But I never understand why they don't, you know, they have an n

h s thing and people do give you 10% off here, fuck all of that.

It should be like mandatory.

It's 50%, it's, you know, they pay cost.

They get rent control.

You give it to them you charge them.

I agree.

And really, everywhere they go, they wave the badge and they get a free meal.

Yeah, I like that.

You know, I think accountants should get 10 percent off.

Team building exercises.

Oh god, bullshit.

No, absolutely not.

Couldn't agree more.

Yeah, that's ADHD again.

Yeah, I know.

You Pivoting.

Pivoting.

What's pivoting?

It is the strategic shift made by a business or an individual, typically in response to market change.

It's basically, it's all gone wrong, let's change the plan.

Basically, when a startup realizes that their idea was shit, and they come up with another one.

Oh, God.

I mean, it sounds like bullshit from the way that you're putting it, but...

I don't know.

I think, to be fair, it is business.

It probably is business, but I mean, a lot of...

business is bullshit.

You can't tell the guest what to say.

It's almost the definition of business because the whole bit you've got to adapt and change and thrive, you know.

Diversity quotas.

Ooh, interesting.

I think it is a bad solution to a real problem because you know, a lot of this

goes back to actually who is coming into a business, who's choosing what roles.

Who's able to access certain positions.

Just saying we need X number of, you know, uh, women or whatever on in this position.

It doesn't like attack the problem at every stage of the chain.

You know, have you got good maternity policies?

Have you got good outreach programs?

Have you got all of this stuff?

So it kind of doesn't really get to the core of the issue.

In office fitness classes.

We'll go quick.

Oh, that sounds amazing.

Yeah, that would be good.

Yeah.

Uh, MBAs.

This is political because my mum used to be in academic teaching business, but I think largely bullshit.

It's correct.

We've only had one person say otherwise.

Wheelhouses.

What's a wheel, what do you mean by wheelhouses?

As in my wheelhouse.

Areas of expertise.

I mean, that makes sense to me.

I know, it's a silly question.

Yeah.

I know, we need to put that on the silly list.

Um, you're going.

Are we doing that?

You're holding all the cards.

Oh, oh, oh.

You're lunatic.

I am holding, you are holding You are holding the cards.

Metaphorically and actually.

Um, meeting agendas.

Yeah, good.

Needed.

People go off on one otherwise.

Yes.

Uh, paradigm shift.

Bullshit.

Flexible working.

Important business.

Low hanging fruit.

Um, oh god, I don't know.

It always sounds slightly rude to me somehow, I don't know why.

Oh, that's, you've got a Babylon.

I have got a dirty mind.

You know, the gardens of Babylon, kind of, you know, grapes of wrath.

I think it probably is business.

Yeah, you start by tackling the things that are easiest and then you go up.

That makes sense.

Although I'm not, you know, I don't know, basically.

You just go, yeah, we'll go business.

Yeah, okay.

Blue sky thinking.

I mean, sounds like bullshit, doesn't it?

Think tanks.

Yeah, exactly.

You yeah.

We've got you now, if you want.

Hot disking.

Um, oh no, I don't like that.

Yeah, no, bullshit.

This is Pathetic.

End work clothes.

Nah, bullshit.

I want to be able to wear whatever I want all the time.

But that's why I don't work in an office.

Excellent.

That was

the end of business or bullshit.

Applause.

A big thank you to Grace for joining us this week, and we'll be back with a brand new episode next Tuesday.

In the meantime, have a great weekend.