Leap of faith
Nothing quite sums up the moment than quoting from a classic piece of literature. Just ask Rupert Nabarro, who resigned from his position as senior advisor to IPD, the company he co-founded 31 years ago. He signed off the e-mail announcing his departure with a snippet from WH Auden’s Leap Before You Look: “The sense of danger must not disappear: The way is certainly both short and steep, however gradual it looks from here; look if you like, but you will have to leap.” Inspiring stuff.
Virtual insanity
Diary fully understands the pitfalls of modern technology, so we were sympathetic when we heard the suffering of one architect. Using a housebuilder’s virtual reality sale-suite headset, said architect was so immersed in the experience that they were terrified when they could not see their legs. A panicked effort to find them led to the architect ending up in a heap on the floor.
A way with words
Nice to see former City chief planning officer, and now professor of city planning at UCL, Peter Rees back in print in this week’s Estates Gazette, where he doesn’t appear to have lost any of his charm. The once lover of towers, for the opportunity they offer for amorous engagements, has had a rather elegant change of heart: “However big the erection, it won’t impress if you put it in the wrong place.”
What’s in a name?
Calling all Nigels! There’s a new property club just for you. Called, imaginatively, Nigels in Property. So
far the sector has managed to produce nine, who got together to celebrate Britain’s least popular name at the group’s inaugural meeting last month. Organised by Nigels Mapp and Amos from MJ Mapp & Co and Stiles Harold Williams respectively, a second soirée is planned for the summer. What other names could benefit from a similar treatment? Rupert? Keith? Colin? Tweet your suggestions to @estatesgazette
What’s mine is yours
Diary often gets e-mails in its inbox that become the subject of some wit and banter on these very pages. This week one of our own brought some insight into our lovely readers. The most-read story on our morning round-up of property news from the world’s leading newspapers on Wednesday – by some measure – was “Common-law wife wins partner’s share of house”. We could almost hear the squeaks of terror during the catch-up on the morning commute.
Duvet downtime
In a world as fast-paced as London’s tech scene, there is nothing like giving staff a bit of downtime to make sure they are refreshed and ready to innovate like their lives depend on it when they are huddled around the communal breakout table/coffee shop/artisanal bakery. That is why proptech app Splittable – which tracks expenses and bills to make shared living and finances as easy as pie – offers each of its staff the ultimate in student luxury to compensate. “We give our staff a duvet day every few months,” says founder Nick Katz. “We find that staff are much more productive if they are well rested, so we make sure they have the opportunity to lie-in, take some downtime and chill out regularly.” Nice work if you can get it.
