It's Only a Cuddle: . . . but It Takes Balls to Do It!

By Mark Price

A journey from resistance to acceptance . . .

Thats the only way Mark Price can describe his life so far. Having grown up as the only boy in the family with an older and younger sister, Mark never really had to take any responsibility for anything. There was always someone to take care of things or help out, and although he was accepting of the help, he wasnt accepting of those people who offered it.

In this, his debut book, Mark shares the experiences which he feels shaped who he was and who he now is.

Take a walk through the pages of this book and look through Marks eyes to see how an ordinary young man changed his own life and the lives of the people closest to him. Maybe then, youll realise that it really is only a cuddle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 27, 2014
• ISBN: 9781491894309

Mark Price

Mark Price is a British businessman and the former managing director of Waitrose and Deputy Chairman of the John Lewis Partnership. He worked at the JLP for 34 years. Mark was Chair of Business in the Community from 2011 until 2015, and Chair of The Prince’s Countryside Fund from 2010 until 2016. In 2018 he was made Chair of Fairtrade Foundation’s Board of Trustees. He founded Engaging Works in 2017. In 2016 he was made a Life Peer and also a member of the House of Lords. He also joined the Government as the Minister of State for Trade and Investment until 2017. He was appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in 2014.

Book preview

It's Only A Cuddle

. . . but it takes balls to do it!

MARK PRICE

24535.png

AuthorHouse™ UK Ltd.

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403 USA

www.authorhouse.co.uk

Phone: [phone]

© 2014 Mark Price. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 02/26/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4918-9429-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-9430-9 (e)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Photography and Cover Design by Francesca Dicembre of 7 Ball Design.

www.7balldesign.com

Written by Mark Price

Certified Trainer of Neuro-Linguistic Programming

Certified Trainer of Hypnosis

Certified Master Practitioner of Timeline Therapy™

Certified NLP Master Coach

Visit Mark Price at www.itsonlyacuddle.co.uk

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Dedication

Foreword

Introduction

The Square Won’t Fit The Circle

There’s The Polis!

A Short Lived Freedom

Na Na Na Na Na

Ding Ding

Movement Is Movement

Stepping Out

The Breakthrough

The Pride Of A Prisoner

(Dis) Ability

It’s Only A Cuddle

It Takes Balls To Do It!

Bonus: Below The Surface

Connection

Standing In The Canvas

YOU Made It Happen

XXII

Impossible Without You

A Wee Guy With A Big Dream

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This may sound a little bit cliché, but there are way too many people to acknowledge.

However, I’m absolutely certain that they will know who they are and that’s all that really matters. Here’s a little secret: you are one of them.

So, all I would like to say here is a thank you to every one of you who have played a part in this journey. It’s been incredible having so many people helping me along the way.

DEDICATION

This book is quite simply dedicated to you.

FOREWORD

I first met Mark back in 2010 when a young and quite scared Scotsman, appeared on one of my NLP Practitioner courses.

He was way out of his comfort zone and yet, even then we could see that there was something very special about this young man. Here was someone who was challenging himself to be better and had the desire to see it through.

I recall talking to him on that course and him telling me that he had this dream of being an inspirational speaker, and public speaking was something he was almost phobic about! But there was a sparkle in his eyes and a burning in his heart to achieve his dream.

His personal development journey continued through our courses and Mark scrimped and saved to become an NLP Master Practitioner. He had found tools that helped him start to discover his potential.

Then he really did it!

He booked himself on NLP Trainers Training in Thailand—a course all about presenting and remember, he had previously had a great fear of this.

He arrived in Thailand and something had changed within him. The fears were gone and an easy going, purposeful young man had emerged.

Confident, excited and willing to try anything. Here was someone who appreciated the world around him and inspired others to do the same.

Mark qualified as an NLP Trainer on the toughest NLP Trainers Training in the world.

He was awesome!

This book is about the personal journey of a young man who knew there was a lot more to find out about himself and a lot more to find out about life. Something which he wasn’t about to let pass him by.

Mark Price is a young man who will not allow himself to be beaten. He has decided to define what life will be for him rather than allow life to define him.

He is an inspirational person and someone I am proud to call a friend.

Bruce Farrow

Certified Master Trainer of NLP

Helford 2000 Ltd

INTRODUCTION

Everyone has a story to tell, or maybe even a few stories. In the pages of this book, you will find one or the other. So, whether you view each chapter as a story in itself or view the entire book as one story is entirely your choice.

I don’t necessarily believe in writing a ‘life story’, quite simply because I haven’t reached the end yet, and so the story is always on-going. However, I do believe that we should occasionally just stop… to reflect on how we’ve been spending our ‘time’ up until a certain point.

That’s what I’ve decided to do here and looking back I’ve surprised myself at just how much I’ve done in the last 25 years. Some of it has been good, some of it not so good. In my opinion, that’s what makes a story and it’s actually a little bit like life too.

There are positive times and times which we could call negative, but the combination of both is what seems to have brought us to where we are right now. I’m not sure about you, but I wouldn’t change a bit of it.

A lot of people think I’ve lost my mind, and truth be told I probably have. I’ll leave that up to you to decide, but in the meantime I hope you enjoy reading about some of my experience (so far) through this thing we call life.

Mark Price

Chapter

1

The Square Won’t Fit

The Circle

People who fit don’t seek. The seekers are those that don’t fit.

Shannon L. Alder

The 27th of February, 1989. I don’t remember much about it, however, it’s what I’ve been led to believe was the beginning.

My eyes opened for the first time and all of my little muscles stretched themselves out as I was placed into my Mum’s arms—then into my Dad’s arms and onto everyone else after that.

I had just been born into this place which we call the world. Or more specifically, I was born into a small room inside Irvine Central Hospital in Scotland and from what I’m told, that room gradually filled up with more of my family. I find that alone quite incredible, to think that I had a family before I even arrived.

Life is more of a miracle than we sometimes realise.

During that time in hospital, my tiny body at 6lb 12oz (after being passed around the room) most likely ended up in a little bedside cot and although I have no conscious memory of that day or indeed of being passed around, I’m pretty sure it would have been done with very little resistance—on my part at least.

I can’t imagine I’d have had any complaints about being held close in someone’s arms.

Soon after that, I was taken home.

Mossblown is a small village in South Ayrshire, Scotland (that was home). With a population of just over 2000 people and its reputation for having—at one time—been a coal mining community, meant only one thing.

Everyone always did know, and probably always will know everyone else.

When I got there, my first stop was a house at the bottom of Mossgreen Place where I spent just over a year with my Mum (Henrietta), Dad (Robert) and my older sister (Amanda) before a house swap saw us move to the opposite end of the same street. The second house is the one which I’ve always known and is where I’ve spent the majority of my life. It’s really where I grew up (although I use that term lightly).

Both houses were very much the same, with the only real difference being the number of us who lived in each. We went from four in the first house, to five in the second house—the new addition being my younger sister Natalie.

Although I’ve spent most of my life in the same place, I don’t recall a huge amount from the earlier years.

Consequently, I relive most of those experiences either from what I’m told, or by looking at old photographs which have been collected over the years.

For some reason, I’ve always enjoyed the latter a little bit more.

Using those photographs as a way of piecing together the things which I can’t quite remember is almost like building a jigsaw of my life. The exciting part about that is that there is still