Why organisations don’t learn…
Our traditional obsessions—success, taking action, fitting in, and relying on experts—undermine continuous improvement. As we, the leaders, deal with tomorrow, our task is not to try to make perfect plans. Our task is to create organisations that are sufficiently flexible and versatile that they can take our imperfect plans and…
Ideas for Having Great 1:1 Meetings: Fostering Productivity and Growth
One-on-one meetings between managers and employees are essential for building strong working relationships, fostering productivity, and supporting employee development. However, without a clear structure and purpose, these meetings can easily devolve into unproductive venting sessions or missed opportunities. I thought it would be useful to put together some ideas and…
Are you an introvert or extrovert? A lesson on energy.
Who doesn’t love a Simon Sinek soundbite? I really enjoyed this 3-minute video, which identifies introverts and extroverts NOT on how big their personality is, but instead how they gain and lose energy. Do you gain energy from others and interactions, or do they deplete you? I love the idea…
How to interrupt unconscious bias
I loved the below thought about interrupting unconscious bias. It was a post from Oxford Leadership, but based on a longer article from Harvard Business Review, which is also worth a read. – Although unconscious bias is hard to eliminate, it is not as challenging to interrupt. Managers can be…
How to open up a conversation when you’re upset. A checklist.
This article and checklist are based on many, many conversations I’ve had with my clients. Most frequently when they’ve found themselves upset or angered by a team member’s behaviour or remarks. Recognising that we create stories about other people before we’ve had a conversation with them is so useful. It’s…
What to do when you don’t trust your team
I have quite a lot of conversations with clients about trusting their teams. In my upcoming book, Emotional Overdraft, ‘Trust’ is one of the ten key drivers I identify as having a detrimental impact on how successfully leaders are able to healthily build and grow their businesses. There are lots…
Internal recruitment referrals – why you should stop being stingy
When I ran agencies, there was one recruitment idea that changed the game. It was so incredibly obvious, and yet it took quite the tussle with members of the SLT to get it approved. It was around internal recruitment referrals. “Not a new idea.” I hear you say. Whilst that…
“When you set a budget, you’re taking control of your future.”
“When you set a budget, you’re taking control of your future.” This quote really struck me when I saw it on one of the social media channels. It’s the kind of thing I’m talking to my clients about all the time. The thing people find difficult to grasp is that…
‘I expected more from them’ – performance punishment
Over the years, I’ve seen performance punishment (and the fallout) in action countless times, so this article felt important. Performance punishment, what is it? Performance punishment is a phenomenon whereby high performing employees are given additional tasks, subjected to increased scrutiny or criticism, and/or expected to work longer hours because…
Watch: Life fright – living with high functioning anxiety
An enlightening TedX talk from a comedian and performer, Jordan Raskopolous about the dichotomy between being supremely confident in one area of life and cripplingly anxious in another. I wanted to share this as a reminder that ‘ShyLoud’ is a real thing, to highlight this specific anxiety disorder to anyone…