The Productive Pessimist

  For the youngest members of the workforce, the idea that the internet could 'end' is an impossible consideration - like trying to imagine the life your family might be living if you'd never come along. For the oldest members of the workforce, there may be a bit of nostalgia for "the way things used to be", tempered with an acknowledgement, perhaps grudging, that the internet has made possible things that couldn't even be imagined when they first started their careers. For the mid-career Millennials, the idea that the internet might stop existing is an intriguing proposition, which comes presented with all sides of the possibility clearly visible. The good, the bad, the ugly and sublime. So, what suggests we might be entering 'The End of the Internet'? Firstly, simple timing.  It's been over 40yrs since the internet was first developed, in its first iteration (January 1st 1983). It's been just over 25yrs since the first social media platform l

  A-Level results day (15th August 2024) has, in recent years, become overwhelmed with social media posts proclaiming that "results don't matter!" and shouting as loudly as possible about business success stories who "weren't academically successful, but are now doing way  better than that person in their class who got straight As!" This bandwagon may have started as a genuine desire to offer comfort to teenagers who were shattered by their first encounter with a particularly harsh reality: that hard work doesn't always guarantee the results you want, or need.  However, it's now become nothing more than a particularly toxic stage for adults to centre themselves and their achievements - "Hey, look at me, kids, I f--ked up completely in school, because I thought it was stupid and boring, and I'm doing okay!" This does harm on several levels: 1. It takes away the pride and sense of achievement which are the foundations of self-esteem and s

Along with  co-production , lived experience has become something of a buzzword in recent years, and, as with all 'trends', people are moving from engaged curiousity to wary suspicion. At The Productive Pessimist, we work exclusively from a position of lived experience - but what does that mean, and what, really, is  lived experience? What Working From Lived Experience Means For Us Working from lived experience means everyone on the Productive Pessimist team has been through what they're guiding others towards understanding of.   We didn't just take a 5hr course, watch a couple of YouTube videos, or read a bestselling book. For example, I (Ash) have the following lived experience: . 22yrs lived experience of managing all aspects of rural living, including travelling 30+ miles for work, without a car . 19yrs lived experience with serious pyschiatric conditions . 16yrs lived experience in trans masculine experience and identity . 9yrs lived experience of kinship care, thr

  The recent riots and racially-motivated intimidation across the North of the UK, and in Northern Ireland, has shown one thing very clearly; that inclusion training and 'awareness' in the UK is failing. For those who have to live in a marginalised experience, especially where their marginalisation is very visible, this isn't news. It isn't a surprise. Even for white British people who face marginalisation because of disability, economic status, sexuality, or gender identity, the fact that "inclusion and diversity awareness and training" typically only makes discriminative attitudes worse . As an organisation working in inclusive practice, we at The Productive Pessimist are obviously very concerned both about genuine  inclusion, and the welcome and safety of all people who are able to behave with courtesy and open-mindedness to others, and about why traditional inclusion training isn't working. The primary issue we've observed is that traditional inclu