In no particular order:

*** I collect books like they’re going out of fashion. I even read some of them

*** I’m very British. I love drinking cups of tea, eating fish & chips and going to the pub. I also have a dry sense of humour, hate small talk and I’m overly polite. That’s not my opinion on the last one by the way. Lauren tells me I’m too polite, and she's not alone. Even an old boss once told me I was too polite for my own good

*** I keep a deck of cards in my office at Fort Grundy (right next to my laptop) and I pick it up every few minutes to bosh out a quick trick or flourish. It's like my personal fidget spinner

*** I love being by and in water. Doesn’t matter if it’s a lake, the sea, a stream, sitting in the rain or chilling by a pool. I find it calming, restorative, inspiring and peaceful. Lauren feels the same way. One day, I think we’ll end up living by a body of water somewhere

*** When I put my mind to something – and I decide it’s something I really want to do – I usually get the job done

*** My DIY skills are awful and my driving skills aren’t much better. Despite being less than a month until I turn 40, the idea of driving a manual car still scares me shitless. I think my driving scares Lauren shitless too (if an episode in a Sainsbury’s car park a couple of years ago is anything to go by – the less said about that the better)

*** During my second year at uni, I spent more time playing poker than I did in lectures (by a LONG way – I’ve done the sums)

*** I’m a fully fledged introvert. If there’s an option to socialise or stay in, I’m staying in 9 times out of 10. In fact, if you lock me in my man cave for a week with food and water, a few books, a pack of cards and my laptop, I’ll be as content as a cat in a sunbeam

In case you’re thinking “That’s lovely Tom, but where’s the life lesson today?”

I’m afraid I’ve got diddly squat for you on that front.

Except, maybe this:

There’s a ninth thing you might not know about me which I haven’t put on this list. 

This is something which has shifted for me in the last 2 or 3 years and has made my life undeniably better.

By that I mean I find it easier to relax and be comfortable in my own skin. I’m also less judgmental and I worry less what other people think.

This ninth thing is the reason why. 

As it happens, the eight examples above are all examples of this “ninth thing”.

Maybe that’s given the game away. But it’s NOT being authentic, self-compassion or letting go of perfectionism.

It’s something else entirely.

If you'd like to know which carrot I’m cheekily dangling in front of you, here’s the deal:

Hit reply. 

In your reply, tell me one interesting thing I might not know about YOU. 

In return, I’ll reply with this ninth thing you might not know about me which has made it easier for me to relax, be comfortable in my own skin, be less judgemental and worry less what other people think. 

And, if you're curious, you can try out this idea to see if it works for you too.