Sharon O'Dea
@sharonodea.com
Consulting, writing and speaking on comms, collaboration & future of work. Cofounder Lithos Partners, DWXS and 300 Seconds. Gym bore. Takes too many photos of Amsterdam.
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Sharon O'Dea
@sharonodea.com
· May 23
🎉 Big news: I’m writing a book!
Digital Communications at Work is a practical guide for folks managing intranets, apps & comms channels. It’s packed with case studies, tips & lessons from the coalface. Co-authored with @digitaljonathan.bsky.social, published by Kogan Page, it’ll be out in 2026.
Digital Communications at Work is a practical guide for folks managing intranets, apps & comms channels. It’s packed with case studies, tips & lessons from the coalface. Co-authored with @digitaljonathan.bsky.social, published by Kogan Page, it’ll be out in 2026.
There's the thing; in a world where more people are working at home there *should* be more demand for local F&B.
Cafes probably are the only thing that can only exist on the high street.
(not sure what to do about greedy landlords)
Cafes probably are the only thing that can only exist on the high street.
(not sure what to do about greedy landlords)
January 11, 2026 at 9:36 PM
There's the thing; in a world where more people are working at home there *should* be more demand for local F&B.
Cafes probably are the only thing that can only exist on the high street.
(not sure what to do about greedy landlords)
Cafes probably are the only thing that can only exist on the high street.
(not sure what to do about greedy landlords)
...and then we’re shocked when vape shops and money laundering barbers move in.
You can’t fix that with parking tweaks and tax breaks alone.
You have to rebuild motive, not just means.
Otherwise the case stays unsolved - and the high street keeps bleeding out in full view.
You can’t fix that with parking tweaks and tax breaks alone.
You have to rebuild motive, not just means.
Otherwise the case stays unsolved - and the high street keeps bleeding out in full view.
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
...and then we’re shocked when vape shops and money laundering barbers move in.
You can’t fix that with parking tweaks and tax breaks alone.
You have to rebuild motive, not just means.
Otherwise the case stays unsolved - and the high street keeps bleeding out in full view.
You can’t fix that with parking tweaks and tax breaks alone.
You have to rebuild motive, not just means.
Otherwise the case stays unsolved - and the high street keeps bleeding out in full view.
So Barnes isn’t beating online retail. It’s offering something different - something worth leaving the house for - to people who have the time and money to do so.
Most struggling towns have lost at least two of those three conditions (often all of them).
Most struggling towns have lost at least two of those three conditions (often all of them).
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
So Barnes isn’t beating online retail. It’s offering something different - something worth leaving the house for - to people who have the time and money to do so.
Most struggling towns have lost at least two of those three conditions (often all of them).
Most struggling towns have lost at least two of those three conditions (often all of them).
Opportunity: home workers who can nip out between calls,
wealthy retirees with time and money, parents on the school run... all within walking distance.
And motive: good cafes, delis, bookshops, bakeries, pubs, independent shops. It isn’t trying to out-Amazon Amazon.
It’s selling something else.
wealthy retirees with time and money, parents on the school run... all within walking distance.
And motive: good cafes, delis, bookshops, bakeries, pubs, independent shops. It isn’t trying to out-Amazon Amazon.
It’s selling something else.
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Opportunity: home workers who can nip out between calls,
wealthy retirees with time and money, parents on the school run... all within walking distance.
And motive: good cafes, delis, bookshops, bakeries, pubs, independent shops. It isn’t trying to out-Amazon Amazon.
It’s selling something else.
wealthy retirees with time and money, parents on the school run... all within walking distance.
And motive: good cafes, delis, bookshops, bakeries, pubs, independent shops. It isn’t trying to out-Amazon Amazon.
It’s selling something else.
And this is why rich areas still have “working” high streets.
Take my (former) local one in Barnes. It’s buzzing.
Not because it’s magical - but because it still has all three.
Means: people walk there. It’s dense, local, human-scale. No car parks, no retail park geography.
Take my (former) local one in Barnes. It’s buzzing.
Not because it’s magical - but because it still has all three.
Means: people walk there. It’s dense, local, human-scale. No car parks, no retail park geography.
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
And this is why rich areas still have “working” high streets.
Take my (former) local one in Barnes. It’s buzzing.
Not because it’s magical - but because it still has all three.
Means: people walk there. It’s dense, local, human-scale. No car parks, no retail park geography.
Take my (former) local one in Barnes. It’s buzzing.
Not because it’s magical - but because it still has all three.
Means: people walk there. It’s dense, local, human-scale. No car parks, no retail park geography.
Too often the answer is: the same chain stores, only with less choice, higher prices, and slower service.
The visible wreckage is empty units and a disproportionate number of barber shops.
But the underlying 'crime' is simpler: the high street lost its motive.
The visible wreckage is empty units and a disproportionate number of barber shops.
But the underlying 'crime' is simpler: the high street lost its motive.
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Too often the answer is: the same chain stores, only with less choice, higher prices, and slower service.
The visible wreckage is empty units and a disproportionate number of barber shops.
But the underlying 'crime' is simpler: the high street lost its motive.
The visible wreckage is empty units and a disproportionate number of barber shops.
But the underlying 'crime' is simpler: the high street lost its motive.
The “high-street window” is tiny - wedged between work, care, commuting, and exhaustion. So whatever’s there has to be worth that window.
Which brings us to the real culprit: motive.
Why would I go? What do I get there that I can’t get cheaper, faster, and with more choice online?
Which brings us to the real culprit: motive.
Why would I go? What do I get there that I can’t get cheaper, faster, and with more choice online?
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
The “high-street window” is tiny - wedged between work, care, commuting, and exhaustion. So whatever’s there has to be worth that window.
Which brings us to the real culprit: motive.
Why would I go? What do I get there that I can’t get cheaper, faster, and with more choice online?
Which brings us to the real culprit: motive.
Why would I go? What do I get there that I can’t get cheaper, faster, and with more choice online?
Next: opportunity.
Who actually has the time, money, and energy to use the high street?
In average/lower income places, people with time don’t have money. And people with money don’t have time.
So they're ordering online at 10pm in their pyjamas.
Who actually has the time, money, and energy to use the high street?
In average/lower income places, people with time don’t have money. And people with money don’t have time.
So they're ordering online at 10pm in their pyjamas.
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Next: opportunity.
Who actually has the time, money, and energy to use the high street?
In average/lower income places, people with time don’t have money. And people with money don’t have time.
So they're ordering online at 10pm in their pyjamas.
Who actually has the time, money, and energy to use the high street?
In average/lower income places, people with time don’t have money. And people with money don’t have time.
So they're ordering online at 10pm in their pyjamas.
Every show starts with means. In high street debates this is the debate over parking, buses, traffic, pedestrianisation.
ie can people physically get there?
That matters - but detectives will tell you: means alone never cracks the case.
Being able to reach a place doesn’t explain why nobody goes
ie can people physically get there?
That matters - but detectives will tell you: means alone never cracks the case.
Being able to reach a place doesn’t explain why nobody goes
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Every show starts with means. In high street debates this is the debate over parking, buses, traffic, pedestrianisation.
ie can people physically get there?
That matters - but detectives will tell you: means alone never cracks the case.
Being able to reach a place doesn’t explain why nobody goes
ie can people physically get there?
That matters - but detectives will tell you: means alone never cracks the case.
Being able to reach a place doesn’t explain why nobody goes
Just read John Harris in the Guardian on the collapse of the UK high street - and why Reform is feeding on the wreckage.
It reads like a crime story. So let’s analyse it like TV detectives do:
Means. Motive. Opportunity. 🧵
It reads like a crime story. So let’s analyse it like TV detectives do:
Means. Motive. Opportunity. 🧵
Latest from me, on an eternally overlooked, sniffed-at issue that is politically huge www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
The UK’s high streets have reached a tipping point – and Reform will reap the benefits | John Harris
When even Poundland and charity shops are closing, we’re near a point of no return. But there is hope, says Guardian columnist John Harris
www.theguardian.com
January 11, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Just read John Harris in the Guardian on the collapse of the UK high street - and why Reform is feeding on the wreckage.
It reads like a crime story. So let’s analyse it like TV detectives do:
Means. Motive. Opportunity. 🧵
It reads like a crime story. So let’s analyse it like TV detectives do:
Means. Motive. Opportunity. 🧵
A(nother) uniquely British High St problem is that they’re so homogeneous. I went to a wedding in Chichester and noticed that it literally had the same shops as Richmond, in the same order. All selling stuff you can get cheaper and easier online.
January 11, 2026 at 8:07 PM
A(nother) uniquely British High St problem is that they’re so homogeneous. I went to a wedding in Chichester and noticed that it literally had the same shops as Richmond, in the same order. All selling stuff you can get cheaper and easier online.
This week’s weeknote is about letting go. Of drafts turning into artefacts. Of things you could keep perfecting forever. Of the comforting illusion of control.
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
Weeknote 2026/01
Snowy Amsterdam this week (photo: Sharon O’Dea) Amsterdam was briefly hit by snow this week, which meant Schiphol ground to a halt and the city centre instantly transformed into an ice rink —…
sharonodea.com
January 11, 2026 at 6:54 PM
This week’s weeknote is about letting go. Of drafts turning into artefacts. Of things you could keep perfecting forever. Of the comforting illusion of control.
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
sharonodea.com/2026/01/11/w...
If you ever fancy a proper nerdy trip, there’s a little ferry that goes around the Rotterdam Container Port and over to the shipping museum. 1hr, €6. It goes round all the giant ships. When we did it, it was the sand Ever ship that got stuck in the Suez.
January 10, 2026 at 9:42 PM
If you ever fancy a proper nerdy trip, there’s a little ferry that goes around the Rotterdam Container Port and over to the shipping museum. 1hr, €6. It goes round all the giant ships. When we did it, it was the sand Ever ship that got stuck in the Suez.
Organic reach is effectively zero if you're not paying. Journalists are on there, but it's not a channel the public use to stay informed. You'd reach more MPs and policymakers by printing your statement off and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
January 9, 2026 at 12:58 PM
Organic reach is effectively zero if you're not paying. Journalists are on there, but it's not a channel the public use to stay informed. You'd reach more MPs and policymakers by printing your statement off and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
In my former life, I wrote lengthy business cases persuading companies and gov depts that they needed to be on Twitter, and put resources behind doing it
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
Keir Starmer's spokesman says X limiting deep fake images to paid users "simply turns a feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service. It's not a solution.. it's insulting the victims of misogyny and sexual violence."
Still won't commit to a ban or to stop posting there
Still won't commit to a ban or to stop posting there
January 9, 2026 at 12:56 PM
In my former life, I wrote lengthy business cases persuading companies and gov depts that they needed to be on Twitter, and put resources behind doing it
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
These days I can't see any justification for continuing to use that site. It's supporting THIS, but - crucially - for NO upside.
An org I advise ultimately decided to stay cos leaving would "look political". On balance thought it better to continue rather than face being called woke by whatever self-radicalised weirdos are still on there.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
January 9, 2026 at 12:49 PM
An org I advise ultimately decided to stay cos leaving would "look political". On balance thought it better to continue rather than face being called woke by whatever self-radicalised weirdos are still on there.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
Principles aside, reach is effectively zero on there now. It's pointless.
It may be too early to declare 2026 my year, but I just had every Sonos device in my home work perfectly right away, so, you know.
January 9, 2026 at 12:26 PM
It may be too early to declare 2026 my year, but I just had every Sonos device in my home work perfectly right away, so, you know.
They had some along those lines in Zara (hers is much nicer, but Zara more in my price range)
January 8, 2026 at 8:28 PM
They had some along those lines in Zara (hers is much nicer, but Zara more in my price range)
Yeah you'd have more traction with MPs just printing your message out and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
January 8, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Yeah you'd have more traction with MPs just printing your message out and tying it to a pigeon in the Westminster area.
"Our reach is much wider"
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
January 8, 2026 at 3:53 PM
"Our reach is much wider"
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
Their last post got less than 2,000 views. Of which at least half are, on current estimates, bots (some say as high as 75%).
Remember when they launched video calling and announced it would replace Zoom and WhatsApp and within a month even their CEO had forgotten it happened?
January 8, 2026 at 11:50 AM
Remember when they launched video calling and announced it would replace Zoom and WhatsApp and within a month even their CEO had forgotten it happened?
Delighted to see Diary of a CEO is finally getting cancelled over on TikTok.
January 8, 2026 at 8:26 AM
Delighted to see Diary of a CEO is finally getting cancelled over on TikTok.
Exactly that. The argument is that gov messaging should be where people are. But I see no evidence that the people any UK public body needs to communicate with can be found there, and even if they were the algo means their posts aren't seen anyway. There is no actual comms benefit to be gained.
January 7, 2026 at 4:28 PM
Exactly that. The argument is that gov messaging should be where people are. But I see no evidence that the people any UK public body needs to communicate with can be found there, and even if they were the algo means their posts aren't seen anyway. There is no actual comms benefit to be gained.
I can’t see how any public body justifies continuing to post on X. Not only are you supporting this, you’re getting nothing in return as posts are essentially invisible, reach-wise.
January 7, 2026 at 4:01 PM
I can’t see how any public body justifies continuing to post on X. Not only are you supporting this, you’re getting nothing in return as posts are essentially invisible, reach-wise.