I’m sure you have read many blogs about this lockdown that we are in, and I have written some that were heartfelt and I hope balanced, but this one is a little more fun!

I decided as I am sitting in my garden enjoying the sunshine and feeling very grateful, I would do some writing. It’s always nice to share thoughts, learnings and so I was thinking about the new things I have discovered since I have been in lockdown.

You may well know all about these new discoveries of mine already, and if that’s the case, honestly why ever didn’t you tell me! But if you don’t know I can only hope I delight you in sharing these absolute gems.

So let’s start and these are in no particular order of my excitement in realising they exist…

Halloumi

Why ever didn’t anyone tell me about this most amazing delight. Apparently my 15 year old son knew, and yet he never told me. Not only did he know, but when I bought some he knew exactly how to cook it. Of course there will be many of you who can now add value to how I could cook it, so feel free to message me and let me know, but he simply adds garlic, some secret herbs that Sam knows about…and olive oil. He then cooks the slices until golden brown, and I mean golden. We are talking crispy and I absolutely love this – so I am officially addicted. It seems that one can have halloumi with anything!

Little Soap Company

Firstly please understand that I have always washed my hands, but with the situation we have been in I have naturally washed them more often and at the beginning of our lockdown my hands were literally in pieces. I had terrible cracked hands and dry skin and it was actually becoming really sore. No matter what hand cream I used it they were not improving. Enter Little Soap Company. Firstly I bought myself a treat of a gift box of soaps and with it was a free gift of the Natural Range Soap Cleansing Bar in Zest Lemon

Now it’s really difficult to express pure emotion when we write but let me try….WOW! And that’s nowhere near enough to say, I’m jumping up and down when I say this.

My hands are fantastic, soft, healthy and I absolutely love this range of products. Not only that, I then received a beautiful gift of their ECO Warriors range of bars and that has changed the game even more. This box has a shampoo bar, an exfoliating bar, a sensitive cleansing bar, a shaving bar, a hand and body bar and a charcoal bar. Not only is this 6 bar set massively eco friendly, but they are also really great products.

Let me also add that I was sceptical about soap bars as my memories of soap when I was growing up were of the last remnants that would sit in the soap dish. The soap bars I remember  always looked a bit yucky and messy and had often lost their smell.

Not these!

They smell amazing due to the essential oils in them, but they don’t go yucky and because I’m mad about them I use them all up and you can, right to the last little bit. Perfect, and also so amazingly good for you. I haven’t used shampoo for over 6 weeks and have always suffered with my scalp. Not any more since I’ve use the eco warrior shampoo bar and the lather is silky smooth and fabulous. I can’t shout this any louder. You have to discover little soap company!

No money is changing hands for this endorsement either – I just love it and you need to know about it!

Psyche

This is a games app. Funny, entertaining and makes you think. Anyone who knows me knows that I am competitive, and so this has been a saviour over the lockdown. You can play it with just two players and even better with more, as the aim of the game is that, depending on what quiz you play, you have to make up an answer that is a bluff to psyche out your other players. When all the answers are listed and everyone has played, there is one correct answer and you have to choose it. Some of the answers are hilarious and the categories are things like strange US laws and animals and movie synopses.

Huge fun and one you can always play even when eventually we are not in lockdown anymore. 

I have also been running a regular games night in my Facebook group every week using this app and zoom – and it has been a real tonic for people to socialise and laugh. Laughter is great for the soul.

Killing Eve

Yep, I hadn’t watched it. Yes I binge watched it. I want to mention it because series 1 & 2 were absolutely great. I totally enjoyed the psychology of it all and of course trying to work out who was good and bad – at times that was a tough one. I liked the cliff hangers and I loved Jodie Cromer who plays the main actress. She is just delightful in a very scary way and her accents are superb. I’ve always loved and been fascinated by accents and she is the master, as well as speaking several languages. The biggest surprise to me was that in real life she is from Liverpool and has a very definite accent – how wonderful. I confess I am not getting on with season 3 so well. It feels slower and not sure the dynamics are quite as they were, but would love to know other’s thoughts – I will persevere.

SMILEY 🙂

This is a music artist who is only 15 years old. I have known about him for a long time, and thought that he was quite talented but the exciting news is that he has now released his tunes to the main music platforms – iTunes, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Play, Deezer and other channels. Four tunes now available and he is working towards an album.

So whilst this is a little bit of a cheat because SMILEY 🙂 is actually my son! We have made a new discovery in https://www.dittomusic.com/

If you love music and produce it then this is great to know about. A small fee allows you to release your music and then earn royalties every time it is played. How amazing is that! Now this is small pennies for streams and downloads, but imagine if one of those tunes just happens to be a hit. Then you may well just start something really wonderful.

I adore music and of course I am super proud of Sam and his music – it’s a real talent to create layers of your own loops and make music, and I may add he has never had a lesson on the piano and yet everything you hear he has played and created himself.

So get yourselves on there if you play or sing, and produce your own music…or if your sons and daughters do. The world need music.

Here’s some of his tunes

https://ditto.fm/petals-smiley

https://ditto.fm/city-lights-smiley-featuring-zerobeat-productions

https://ditto.fm/lost-in-time-smiley

https://ditto.fm/anticipation

So there you have my 5 new discoveries that I have made during lockdown.

I have also discovered that…

  • I don’t watch as much TV as I used to – except Killing Eve!
  • I love having meals with my son.
  • We talk even more than we did, and boy we talked.
  • I listen to more music now which I love.
  • I can make great chocolate brownies.
  • I’m embracing my grey and I am ok with that – for now!
  • I’ve really enjoyed connecting to friends I haven’t spoken to for ages.
  • I made even more new business buddies.

Simply put I have appreciated the simple things in life so much more than I ever did before!

Stay safe and well.

My TEDx talk tells of my journey having lost everything and I hope that now is a good time to watch it and hopefully take just a little inspiration from it too 

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Jules White

Jules White is a professional sales coach whose business allows her to do what she loves, helping entrepreneurs and businesses to succeed at sales and to fall in love with selling. She has over 30 years' experience of business and sales, including winning investment from Peter Jones on Dragons' Den, making her a real dragon slayer. She is a regular public speaker and hosts the podcast 'The Human Conversation' on iTunes.