One of our most important motivational needs is “connection”, through social interactions and building relationships. If we don’t feel connected with others, we feel stress or a heightened sense of anxiety. With our amazing technology, it’s often assumed that social media and interacting online provides what we need to feel that level of connection. […]
Many people are put off giving any feedback at all. They underestimate how much others desire constructive feedback, and worry they could anger or upset the person they’re giving it to. We’ve all been on the receiving end of someone saying “can I give you some feedback” and immediately thinking that it’s going to be […]
“Zoom fatigue” – yet another phrase we would never have said or heard of this time last year! And it would be fair to say that many people are in the “I’m bored of it all now” stage. 2020 has certainly been a masterclass in seeing how mental anxiety and stress increases when we are […]
Nobody likes to feel left out of a conversation, or that their contribution isn’t valued. Well, I’ve not met someone yet! The phrase “out of sight, out of mind” has become increasingly concerning recently, and as we move forward with new ways of working. Effective leadership and communication will help keep the whole team engaged, […]
Can human nature be causing issues in today’s organisations by instinctively being anti leadership? The biggest challenge for leaders of today is the shift in power away from a command and control, carrot and stick management, to an understanding that their focus needs to be on others. As organisations grow and develop over the next […]
We’ve all walked into a room at some stage and thought, “wow, you can cut this atmosphere with a knife”. The energy in the room is electric with negativity, conflict and possibly even anger. And most us would prefer to turn around and walk straight back out again. A negative atmosphere can spiral out of […]
Have you ever considered who’s paying the price for your emotional state? If you’re in a bad mood in one meeting, do you find that you’ve taken that mood into the next meeting? And then, those people in the second meeting are paying the price for what’s happened previously, and often have absolutely no idea […]
When trying to achieve success for goals and targets, changing a couple of tiny words can help you move your focus from negative to positive. Not only is this very useful for your personal goals, but it’s will make a difference when communicating and motivating others. For more information on how Executive Coaching can make […]
Are you ever worried that your communication isn’t perfect? Before your conversation (i.e. in your head), you know what you want to say and how you want to say it. You may have also considered what the other person’s thoughts or objections may be. You may even have learnt some new techniques (be it in […]
How often do you think you should be “seen” by your team? When should you be available to your team if they want to talk to you? Those keeping to the confines of their office may appear unapproachable or intimidating. And although sometimes that can feel like the better option, so work can be done […]
Not a sentence I would expect to say very often: my coat went to the theatre without me. But that’s exactly what happened the other day Having had a very nice meal at a lovely restaurant, my friend and I went with our hanger tickets to collect our coats from the receptionist, who had put […]
Having a team that works well together is something that leaders obviously strive for. We want respect, encouragement, engagement and team creativity. Many leaders will try to avoid any form of conflict from happening, worrying that this can only cause them issues. However, what we need to be aware of is when there’s a pressure […]
As a manager, I would often take on new teams and one of the first things I would discuss with them is the need for them to talk to me. Of course I needed to know what was being achieved, expectations against targets, when mistakes have happened etc. But importantly, I also needed them to […]
Whenever someone came up to my desk to ask me something, I automatically put a smile on my face to greet them. I had learnt over the years that apparently I look miserable if I’m not smiling! And it came as a shock to people when I wasn’t smiling! More recently I’ve learnt there is […]
Most people have heard of 360 feedback: getting feedback from your manager, peers and direct reports in order to get a good overview of your strengths and development areas. However, have you thought of how your leadership should be skilled outwardly in all directions, communicating effectively with all those around you? In order to lead […]
Whenever I’m discussing communication skills with managers, I often find myself challenging them on their assumptions about what other people (peers, manager, team members) might be thinking in specific situations. “How do you know?” How do you know what they are thinking, if you haven’t asked them? If you’ve not asked them, then you can […]
In a previous article I talked about Motivational Needs and how leaders can motivate or de-motivate their colleagues and teams using psychological rewards or threats against fundamental values such as fairness, significance, variation, certainty, autonomy and connection. Now I wanted to move away from the leadership skills and review what you can do as an […]
A major conflict between departments can cause considerable delay to organisational success and stress for those involved. A recent discussion I had was regarding a stand-off between a client’s Sales and Operations departments. Sales were concerned that the Operations department were hampering their ability to win new clients with strict processing rules, and Operations believed the Sales department […]
As a leader, can you spot those around you who are just telling you want you want to hear? Those who may be “spinning” you one line, but causing havoc and conflict with other team members or departments around you? Many of us will have experienced seeing someone manage up very well to their boss, […]
How often have you tried to talk to someone, doing your best to explain to them as clearly as possible your ideas or thoughts, only to find that at the end their understanding of what you said was very different from yours? Or, in other words, they just didn’t get it. Words are used to […]
How would you describe being unprofessional? Perhaps a boss, colleague or client didn’t control their emotions under stress, disrespected others, gossiped, or failed to do what they said they would do when they said they would do it? As a leader, how would you handle someone asking for flexible working hours, but then angrily stating […]
Have you ever experienced going to an event with someone and when discussing it afterwards, it was as if you were at two different events? It’s worth understanding why that is in order to help improve communication. We receive an external event through our sensory input channels (visual, auditory, kineasthetic, olfactory smell, gustatory taste). Then […]
Have you ever heard “my boss just doesn’t understand me”, or “why does my boss think their way is the only way, rather than focussing on the results I can achieve”? One of my previous boss’ perceptions of my management style was summed up in his description “you’re too protective of your team and have […]
Following the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics, researchers studied those who had won gold, silver and bronze medals. Those who won gold seemed the happiest, but surprisingly those who received bronze seemed happier than those who got silver. According to a recent Inc.com article, this is down to what psychologists call “counterfactual thinking” or “what if”, […]
Giving feedback is a very important communication skill needed to ensure that the team members understand their contribution to success and learn from any mistakes. But there’s one word that is very important to use well if you’re going to get the desired affect (and you’ll see what I did there in a second!) And […]
If you don’t give feedback, or only rarely (eg. only during Annual appraisals), then your employees get very little encouragement to provide exceptional performance, as the assumption could be that all is fine. No news is good news? Although not great for building confidence levels. Studies have shown that people who received regular praise and […]
Have you been in a situation where a major success has been achieved, but when asked what was the driving force, every person, leader and/or department involved has taken some kind of credit? It was the customer research, the new processes, the systems enhancements, the marketing, the leadership skills. Although we learn a lot from […]
I love to dance! That’s my passion and it would take a lot to stop me from getting to my lesson. Not only do I enjoy the process of learning, but it’s also a good way of reducing stress and having fun. But there are also benefits that can be transferred into your leadership role, […]
During one of my Financial Services Senior Exec interviews on Leadership (see video), a great observation about inappropriate leadership was raised. And that was about amplifying the stresses and pressure from above down to your team, and the consequences of doing that to those who receive it. One of my personal experiences was during the crucial […]
Nobody likes making mistakes (I know, obvious Karen!), but there’s a big difference to your approach when you’re scared of making them. There’s the personal fear, but it could also be that your organisation has a “blame culture” where mistakes are frowned upon and people are always on the lookout for a scapegoat. This would […]
