Two Sylvias' Weekly Muse: May 18, 2025
Issue 159
Hello, Creative Writers!
Recently, there's been increased interest in the value of poetry within corporate workplaces—an environment we don't usually associate with odes, haiku, or eco-poems. Business editor Isabel Berwick explores this connection, revealing how poetry is becoming a tool in leadership development and executive coaching. In an article in the Financial Times, Berwick interviews Deborah Alma, founder of the Poetry Pharmacy and co-author (with CEO Mark Constantine and business psychologist Kate Downey-Evans) of the new book, The Poetry Business School. Alma’s Poetry Pharmacy, a unique shop in the UK, prescribes poems packaged in jars to visitors seeking support for everything from breakups to burnout. Alma and her co-authors propose in their book that both poetry and business share creative foundations: vision, risk-taking, and the communication of ideas. They suggest poetry can bring clarity and inspiration to a workplace, especially during challenging periods.
Alma believ…