5 May 2016
Back at my desk, and inspired by Mr Poore’s kind words, I finish the third volume of my end-of-presidency speech. I have included some thank yous to the other Officers, each of whom has helped me in his or her own particular way. The EyePeePee taught me to be more sensible, and to read things properly before I commented on them – or at least to wait until someone else had read them properly before agreeing with their assessment. The VeePee, meanwhile, taught me not to do things in too much detail. He was not 100.00% successful in this, but at least my meeting notes no longer include what kind of biscuits we ate. The Onssek taught me not to take things personally, for example when people told me I was incompetent or improper. And also to use more commas. Or rather, to use them in different places. Which, I did. The EyePeePee and the EyeEyePeePee together taught me that there is Life beyond the CIPA Presidency, although it can be of variable quality: for example, the EyePeePee’s Life beyond Presidency involves gin and tonic and shopping for quality shoes and skiing holidays and evenings out with friends, whereas the EyeEyePeePee’s Life beyond Presidency involves putting on a boiler suit and welding bits of steam train together. The VeePee taught me that the best thing to do, just in case you are destined to end up in a boiler suit, is to enjoy your Life beyond Presidency during the period before your presidency. This he did with terrific commitment and in several different countries of the world: there are emails to prove it. Mr Davies, though not an Officer in the strict sense of the word, taught me a number of things. Some of them were expletives. Some of them I have not dared try yet. But the most important of all was that you must live your life in a perpetual state of optimism, because optimism confuses people, especially patent attorneys. He is not wrong. Sometimes my optimism confuses me too.
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