It’s often said that ‘who you hang out with matters‘. I’ll be honest, I used to think this was some kind of shallow reference to befriending people for your own ends and therefore it just did not sit well with me. Indeed, I’m sure we’ve all been to networking events where it’s felt like people just want to know your …
What ‘Catchphrase’ teaches us about feedback
One of the most popular chapters in my book is about giving feedback, so I’ve extracted some of the practical tips for you here. Anyone who has worked with us knows I’m a fan of practical stuff that you can actually remember when under pressure so if you draw a blank in your next feedback conversation, just remember the words of …
The power of emotions over performance
Whilst working on my book Help, I’m a Manager, I have noticed the extent to which my own performance has often been dictated by feelings and emotions. Moments of self-doubt, worry, fear, frustration, alongside ‘punch the air’ moments – all these either slowed me down or sped the project along. In this blog I’ve reflected on how our feelings play out in …
Helping others to change.
I often meet with managers who tell me about people in their teams who “need to change”. They tell me “Fred needs to be more X and less Y, Sue”. Whilst this is often said with good intent, I know as well as you do that telling Fred he needs to change does not mean he will. We all know …
What makes us ‘professional’?
I’ll put my cards on the table right now. I love working in professional services. There’s just something that makes me feel right at home in the sector, having begun my early career as a trainee surveyor a long time ago. So long ago in fact, that there was a certain professional etiquette and heirarchy still in place for us trainees. We did …
Did you get what you wanted?
One of the things I am painfully aware of at this time of year, is that many of us are good at writing lists and goals and ‘resolutions’ but are not willing to do anything different. For many of us, we seem to think that this equation might work: Do Same Stuff + More Same Stuff = Different Result My …
Words to avoid to have more impact
Altering your language is just one way you can have more impact, instantly. One of the practical tips that our coaching clients have found most useful recently is to stop using certain words so I thought I would share them. There’s no magic to them – if you want to sound more assertive when talking to people, simply reduce your use …
Pick a powerful question for your brain to work on over Christmas
Someone recently sent me a great quote, which I thought I would share with you as we head towards the holiday season. “The quality of your life will be determined by the quality of the questions that you ask of yourself”. I find this a powerful thought in itself. I wonder what it would be like to start thinking now about …
Nuggets from the CIPD Conference
Lots of learning happened yesterday as we spent some time at the CIPD Conference #CIPD2015. Here are some particularly juicy nuggets that we brought back to the office. Nugget 1 – Number of leavers/staff turnover will stop being a valid measure of success. It was no surprise that managing ‘Millennials’ was a recurring topic. There are various stats out there but generally, …
Where did the day go?
Amidst many of the people development projects I get involved with, I am often met with the phrase “I don’t have time to do my job”. I know this problem reaches way beyond the people I see face to face, so thought I would share with you some of the insights gained from working with busy professionals with you, as …