One of the problems with Board meetings is that they very rarely allocate enough time to focus on what’s happening right now. When the Board convenes everyone will have prepared something that...
I still have the thank you letter that mattered the most to me during my time at Yellow Pages.
It was from the HR director for a firm that sold and hired plant machinery. It wasn’t a throw...
Leaders and managers need to spend less time focusing on the result, the output of their team’s efforts.
Talking about results, good, bad, hit or missed, doesn’t change them, whether you...
You are a good listener. Friends talk to you. You can keep a secret too. Listening to friends and families, of course, may be easier than listening to colleagues or customers.
Is that true...
The 3 Camps When it Comes to Training
A few years ago, I had a call from a Canadian chap called Blake who was the European representative of an international training firm...
I was witness to a really talented manager recently, while on a Ski holiday in France with 6 different families.
On New Year’s Eve one of the children made a foolish mistake which caused...
As coaches, about now, many of our clients are starting to fall off whatever New Year Wagon they got on. Giving up drinking, eating, taking up exercise, cycling, walking, being nicer to people etc...
I ask the person handing me the coffee cup, “are your lids compostable?” “I have no idea,” comes the reply. I check the lid. 100% Compostable reads the embossed vegware. “They are” I say! “Oh...
During a training session last week people were discussing what they want to watch over Christmas. Mary Poppins Returns was talked about a lot, as were other family movies. The ‘is Die Hard a...
When I first began work, the rules were very clear and inflexible. You had to wear a suit. You could smoke at your desk and only had an hour for lunch. You did things...
Most year’s we will wake up with a hangover on the 1st January and decide on our New Year’s Resolution. We then spend a few days failing entirely to achieve it and by the middle of...
I had an enquiry earlier this year from a growing organisation with 300 salespeople, they didn’t call them salespeople. They called them Customer Service people. Their job was to take incoming...
A common theme in coaching conversations is people who have achieved what they initially aimed for and are unsure of what comes next. Sometimes, they take on a high-profile role, with seemingly...
Uncertainty has been hanging around the UK economy for over 3 years now. We're used to it - and many of us plan way ahead on purpose, to 'work through' this period. Then, when we think it may be...
This is the famous maxim of Elmer Wheeler who made it number 4 in his 5 Wheelerpoints. The original book which contains this gem is ‘Tested Sentences that Sell’ first published in 1937.
The...
This week has been brilliant. I am approaching a significant birthday and certainly enjoying the lead up!
During the week several people have really made me smile. One was a flight...
As I approach a significant birthday I have started pondering this conundrum. Many people talk to me about their mid-life crisis. They take a number of forms, worrying about age (and trying to be...
This is the last in a series of short blogs on observations taken from Arthur Miller’s play, which I was lucky enough to see the latest revival of.
I’ve written two other short posts see ...
This follows my previous Blog following my trip to see a terrific revival of Arthur Miller’s play. See https://www....
When growing up, there comes a point when you realise you can earn money for work. You look for suitable weekend or evening employment and learn to stack shelves, serve coffee, serve drinks or...