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In April's Bulletin we hear from Chris Larkin, Founding Director of Pure Sales Consulting who writes an inspiring piece on Performance Excellence.

We are excited and delighted to announce Diggory Lifestyle has a new partner, a 5 star luxury hotel collection. We also share with you our news on Twitter; Hickory Diggory Blog and our new Diggory website Home page. 

We are delighted to have teamed up with Decorative Fair and have complimentary tickets to offer Diggory readers. 

We have a fabulous restaurant review by Hardens; and if you are bored with the gym, we offer you an alternative!

We also share with you a selection of the tasks we completed for our clients this month.

Diggory's own contributor, Roger Collis, writes a wonderfully satirical piece on the dangers of decision making in business!

We have 'Ask the Experts'; and we showcase the ultimate Bluetooth headset, Jawbone.

There are some wonderful exhibitions, fairs and events happening this month and we share with you our pick of the best.

And in case you were wondering 'Style does maketh the man'...check it out!

Dee Hope, Founder of Diggory Lifestyle

article: performance excellence, by chris larkin

Provider of inspirational training to some of the UK's top sales people and advisors; Chris Larkin, founding Director of Pure Sales Consulting, a company dedicated to creating sales excellence, shares with us his tips on Performance Excellence.

We can always do more to be better. It works on whatever level you like: take the stairs instead of the lift; write a to-do list and actually do it; or put in thousands of hours of diligent practice to perfect the 30-yard free kick. Your choice.

And it is relevant across the board – parenting, personal, professional – wherever you want to make improvements and perform better. When it comes down to business, at Pure Sales we describe this as Performance Excellence. 

Performance Excellence sits at the heart of the best businesses. It is what they do. In order to achieve this level of corporate excellence, what do you do, what do the best do? When helping clients achieve it, we stick to a simple 5-step plan as follows:

1. BEST PRACTICE
Find out what's working and what's not.

In a business environment we define how the most accomplished person in a particular role performs – what does he or she know and do? This enables us to...read more

ask the experts

Whether you have questions on IT, efficiency or business travel our experts will have the answers.

Efficiency - Elizabeth Marsh, Putney

Q: "I find it so frustrating when my things go missing in the office; I think my stapler is the only one that works judging by the amount of time it spends off my desk! Thoughts?"

A: Dee says, "Imagine a surgeon not having their instruments immediately to hand, the results would be catastrophic. It is essential in all works to have the tools of your job available and in good working order; anything else is...read more

IT - Marcus Summers, Fulham

Q: "Can I password protect my Microsoft Word files?"

A: Infineo says, "You can protect your document by applying password so that unauthorized people cannot display as well as modify your document. There are two types of passwords that you can apply...read more

Travel - Jim Macintyre, Paris

Q: "I booked a train ticket to London together with a rental car on the Eurostar Web site. Later, while I was able to change my ticket, I was not allowed to change my car reservation. It is preposterous for Eurostar to offer one-stop booking facility and then apply different rules to each booking component. It seems that Eurostar went through Expedia to make the car reservation with Alamo. Had I made the car booking direct with Alamo, I would have been allowed to change that booking."

A: Roger says, "Dynamic packaging,’ which allows you to book, say, train or airline tickets, along with a hotel room, a car rental, or whatever, can be convenient, but it denies you flexibility, and the ability to shop around for a better price for each component, which may carry differ...read more

Submit your question to the Experts

jawbone: the ultimate bluetooth headset

How familiar is it to be rushing around London, late for your next appointment, with your phone to your ear, screaming, "What did you say, I can't hear you!?" as a police sirens blaze past you - frustrating isn't it.

Might I suggest you check out Jawbone it may make life a little less stressful. Jawbone has been able to eliminate real world noise better than any other headset to date, because it is the only headset that can accurately separate speech from ambient noise.

They come in lots of different colours, black, grey and the somewhat bolder colours, as depicted in this image.

Their on-line demo is something to be seen and heard.

Every Executive should have one

article: decisions decisions; by roger collis

Read this wonderfully satirical piece by Diggory's own contributor Roger Collis, author and columnist for the New York times and CNN.

Any idea that the buck stops here is bravado, mythology, total nonsense,’ a senior colleague said as I started my last corporate incarnation.

He nodded towards the appalling pile of paper his secretary had just brought in. ‘That’s stuff waiting for decisions of some kind. What I do is make the quick and obvious ones, delegate some to my staff, and chuck the rest out. You can be sure that anything really important is going to come screaming down the phone sooner or later. But you’ll find most things either resolve themselves or get overtaken by events.’

What you might call a balanced view of decision-making. And one which brought Bill an enviable reputation as the most decis...read more 
 

antiques fair: the decorative antiques & textiles fair

The Marquee, Battersea Park, London, 0207 616 9327 www.decorativefair.com

COMPLIMENTARY E-TICKETS: We are delighted to have teamed up with the Decorative Fair to offer Diggory readers a complimentary ticket which admits 2 people to the April Fair. Please email the Decorative Fair PR pr@pipparoberts.com and mention Diggory, and an e-ticket will be sent to you.

London’s most unusual interiors event, favoured by designers and those seeking unusual antiques and statement pieces.

The Decorative Antiques & Textiles Fair features 135 exhibitors selling antiques and C20th design to suite all tastes and decorating schemes; the ideal event at which to find a truly unique piece for your home or garden.

From opulent show-stoppers to useful furniture, the exhibitors offer a broad range of both fine quality and affordable pieces for inspired interiors.

The Fair is fun, fashionable and particularly well-known as an excellent source of painted furniture, Gustavian & Swedish design, 20th century design, lighting, accessories and named-design furniture, and excellent mirrors.

It’s worldwide reputation, established over 25 years, entices international trade and retail buyers, interior designers, and private customers seeking unique and unusual furnishings and quirky accessories for decorating schemes.

20 -25 April 2010 see website for opening times. Admission £10.00.

badminton horse trials

Badminton Horse Trials, Badminton, Gloucester, GL9 1DF

The Badminton Horse Trials, set in the beautiful grounds of the Duke of Beaufort's Gloucester estate is the ultimate challenge in the demanding sport of three day eventing.

It is an exciting year as Badminton will be the selection trials for the World Equestrian Games in Kentucky this coming September, so it is more likely than ever to attract a high quality field of international competitors.

Badminton's shopping village is one of the many highlights of the event each year, attracting a huge collection of many well known brands, which in turn attracts a huge audience of shoppers from across the world.

If you have a dog you are allowed to take them, but they must remain on the lead at all times, and are not permitted in the Main Arena Grandstands or Badminton Members' Enclosure nor any restaurant. So if you need to gain access to any of these areas you can leave your dog at the Dog Creche for a maximum of two hours.

Friday 30th April - Monday 3rd May

exhibition: grace kelly: style icon

Our pick of the best exhibitions and fairs this month:

V&A South Kensington, Cromwell Road, London 0207 942 2000 www.vam.ac.uk

The spectacular wardrobe of Grace Kelly will be on display at the V&A. Tracing the evolution of her style from her days as one of Hollywood’s most popular actresses in the 1950s and as Princess Grace of Monaco, the display will present over 50 of Grace Kelly's outfits together with hats, jewellery and the original Hermès Kelly bag. Dresses from her films, including High Society, will be shown as well as the gown she wore to accept her Oscar award in 1955.

These will be accompanied by film clips and posters, photographs and her Oscar statuette. The display will also include the lace ensemble worn by Grace Kelly for her civil marriage ceremony to Prince Rainier in 1956 and 35 haute couture gowns from the 1960s and 70s by her favourite couturiers Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy, and Yves St Laurent.

17 April - 26 September 2010. Adults £6.00

exhibition: Fra Angelico to Leonardo: italian renaissance drawings

The BP Special Exhibition, Round Reading Room, British Museum, Great Russell Street, London 0207 323 8181 www.britishmuseum.org

Drawn from the two foremost collections in the field, this major exhibition features 100 exquisite drawings by Italian Renaissance artists including Raphael, Leonardo, Michelangelo and Verrocchio.

A unique collaboration between the Uffizi in Florence and the British Museum, the display charts the increasing importance of drawing during this period, featuring works by Leonardo da Vinci, Fra Angelico, Jacopo and Gentile Bellini, Botticelli, Carpaccio, Filippo Lippi, Mantegna, Michelangelo, Verrocchio and Titian.

This exhibition is a unique opportunity to discover the evolution of drawing which laid the foundations of the High Renaissance style of Michelangelo and Raphael. This drawing is Head of a woman, 1470s by Andrea del Verrocchio.

22 April - 25 July. 10am-5.30pm; Thursday - Friday 10am-8.30pm. Adults £12.00