I’ve lost count of the number of people who have told me that they’re not creative. Unfortunately, until a few years ago, that included me! My belief was set in stone for me when I joined a management consultancy (as one of my first full time jobs, many years ago). The directors wanted me to […]
Have you wondered whether executive coaching is for you? Unsure what the procedure would be, and therefore feel uncertain about getting involved? Well, hopefully the below will help. Coaching from Assiem Ltd is tailormade, uses your real-life situations to implement what you learn and provides a supportive and confidential environment in which to discuss your […]
When you’re asked to brainstorm some new ideas, who do you invite to the meeting? Are you inviting like-minded individuals, those you may have worked with before or you seem to get along with? This may seem like a good idea, but you could be missing out on some vital thought processes and opinions. For […]
The phrase “can I give you some feedback?” can instil dread in many a heart! The next thought can often be “oh no, they’re going to make me look bad here”. A report for DDI by Harris Interactive found that employees would rather suffer a bad hangover, do housework or see their credit card bill […]
I was in my dance lesson the other day and we were going over the tiniest aspects of a particular step. We analysed all aspects of this one move, in the greatest of detail – for 50 minutes! I realised that for years I’ve been doing the same move in the same way, despite a […]
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 […]
Over the years, Leadership Development programmes have cost organisations dearly. Companies can be providing their leaders with the tools, but more often than not, nothing much changes in the day-to-day results. As with the old proverb “you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink”, you can provide great leadership development […]
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 […]
Think about when you’ve had a very busy day at work, you’ve made lots of decisions on strategy, resources, management issues, budgets etc. When you get home you are faced with even more decisions to make regarding the family, what to eat, where you might go on holiday, activities with the children. Sound familiar? At some […]
Do you think of leadership as a goal that you may achieve and be good at one day? Ticking off a set of criteria (possibly by attending specific training courses) that get you to the end goal of “Being a Good Leader”? Are you putting additional pressure on yourself to be the best leader, as […]
Have you been told that you don’t take enough risks when coming up with new ideas? Or you need to look beyond the day to day and find new and innovative ways to take the team/business forward? Or you need to do more on building and leading new strategies? Additionally, as a leader, have you […]
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 few years, leaders will benefit from concentrating on empowering, team building and coaching their […]
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 […]
When it comes to the important things in your life, you don’t want to have to learn how to do them alone. For instance, how would you feel if you were handed a manual and told that you were going to be driving in a city for the first time in an hour, by yourself? […]
It’s often reported that employees leave their managers, not the organisation. The manager is the person, more than anyone else, who help others thrive, increase employee engagement and determine the success for individuals and the business. Or they can demotivate and drive employees away, even to the competitor. High turnover statistics, especially when there are […]
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, […]
Want to get the best out of your team, but feel that you haven’t got the time to do it? Your workload may well already be stressful enough, with targets and demands from senior executives. I can certainly relate to that sentiment, as I often found myself “managing” during the day and “working” either side […]
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 […]
I’m sure most of us, at one time or another, have had a project cancelled, or report/presentation we’ve been working on changed by our manager with little explanation. You’ve put a lot of effort in to the detail, worked long hours to get it completed, put your heart and soul into the results. What do […]
I was asked the other day what I would do to get more women on the board of today’s organisations. From the Women on Boards Annual Progress Report, as of March 2013, the FTSE 100 figures show: Women now account for 17.3% of all directorships, up from 10.5% in 2010. Women account for 34% of […]
In your current leadership role, have you thought about how you’d like to be remembered once you move on to your next challenge? If you’ve already had a number of roles, what was the legacy you left behind? Was it what you wanted, something to be proud of, or was it disappointing? Whether you choose […]
The other day I was asked to provide my thoughts on what makes the best coaching workshop or 1-2-1 sessions. Interesting question, but one it didn’t take me too long to answer, as this is something I’m passionate about. Coaching is successful when I can see those who are attending really getting to grips with […]
After watching a play at the theatre the other day, I started to compare the production of this show to leading a team. May seem strange, but bear with me! During the show, it was possible to sense the “newbie” in the team: the one with less confidence, slouched posture, etc. But I was also […]
There’s been some recent research which shows that individuals working on their own are much more effective at producing new ideas than when working within a team. However, to get even better results, leaders should use a mixture of creating new ideas and brainstorming techniques. From the research by Nicolas Kohn, Paul B Paulus and […]
Many organisations have now started to implement coaching programmes, whether that’s using internal or external resources. The sporting arena has thought of coaches as essential for many years (and our 2012 Olympic success brought that to the fore) but until recently the business arena has been slower to understand and appreciate the benefits. It’s now […]
“That person annoys me all the time.” It’s become more evident from working with some of my coaching clients, that emotional anger and frustration in the workplace is a big concern for them and could be a contributor to lack of success for leaders. Have you ever noticed that once you’re annoyed or frustrated with […]