Local entrepreneur, mentor and author Michael Higgs has released a new autobiography encouraging the next generation to seize all opportunities and recounts his move to Olney.

When we look back on our lives, the last thing many of us want to feel is regret for those chances that we didn’t take or time we didn’t live as as our true selves. Avoiding this means seizing the opportunities life presents you with, riding the rollercoaster of both the highs and lows and taking each day as a chance to be who you want to be.

Now entering his ninth decade, this approach has defined the remarkable life of Onley-based entrepreneur, mentor and author Michael Higgs, who is now sharing his rich and vivid life story in his new autobiography to inspire the next generation, including why and when he made Olney his home.

Initially putting pen to paper at the end of the first Covid lockdown, Michael had the intention of writing about human behaviour, and the ways in which we are similar and yet so different to the animal kingdom. However as he began documenting his 80 years, it quickly became much more. Bad Behaviour chronicles Michael’s captivating story against a backdrop of many of the 20th Century’s defining eras from the swinging 60s to the 90s vast technological transformations.

Charting his thrilling journey starting in a small town in Kent, Bad Behaviour is a riveting read delving into childhood scrapes, romantic forays, dangerous exploits, multi-national corporations and globe-trotting travels in which he found himself embroiled in Post-Soviet Russia, Egypt and Kenya. Bad Behaviour illuminates Michael’s unique perspective not only on his own life so far, but also the intricacies of human behaviour.

Michael made Onley his home in 2019, which was closer to family. It’s always been an area he has loved. Michael reflects on his fondness of Onley and choice to move there within the book: “I spent a lot of time reconnoitering Olney and inevitably gravitated towards its traditional pubs and restaurants, along with many others from neighbouring villages. The high street was the ideal destination for a relaxed meal or catching up with friends. The residents of Olney were welcoming, with horse riders and dog owners greeting me on every walk, and even a walk along the high street would be peppered by conversations with strangers. I was drawn into the genial, old-style small-town feeling, and knew this was where I wanted to be.” Michael has built a very happy and full life in Olney.

Inspiring others to achieve greater things using lessons from his life experiences, Michael encourages readers, particularly the younger generations, to go out and take what they want from life. Coming from humble beginnings, Michael is living proof that it is possible to carve out an extraordinary journey and his story certainly does not end here.

Michael is very much continuing to live by the same inspiring mantras. Whilst he has chosen to physically settle in Olney, he is certainly not slowing down. “At an age when most people might be comfortably retired, I’m motivated to transform 80 years of experience into fresh business ventures, travel to places I’ve never been and enjoy these years to the full,” he says.

Bad Behaviour immerses readers in the exceptional twists and turns of Michael’s life so far and what he has learned along the way. Both an uplifting and emotive tale, Bad Behaviour implores readers to seize every opportunity presented to them with both hands and enjoy the ride. You never know where it might take you.

Bad Behaviour by Michael Higgs is available now from Amazon.