Situational Leadership – one size does not fit all!
Are you a micro-manger or a champion delegator? Someone who is always there to provide support or someone who promotes independence and autonomy? Common questions in the professional development environment, but they might not be as helpful as they first seem…. There are a few problems with concepts like ‘micro-management’, ‘delegation’, ‘support’ and ‘autonomy’: –…
Is self-esteem all it’s cracked up to be?
We tend to think of self-esteem as the thing we need to attain to achieve great things – that elusive confidence in our own self-worth or abilities. But there’s some really interesting research that suggests that self-esteem is not necessarily all it’s cracked up to be. The word ‘esteem’ comes from the Latin root ‘aestimare’…
Developing self-awareness in ourselves and others
I’ve recently been working with a client on a corporate self-leadership program and in doing so revisited the Johari Window model. It’s an oldie but a goodie! The very best thing about this model is that is is named after its two creators Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham (Jo-Harry). I have aspirations to do something…
Optimism in the workplace
How optimistic is your organisation in its people development and well-being strategy? It may seem a strange question, but I find it a really useful question to reflect on. You see, although we might think of optimism as a positive thing, not all types of optimism are helpful! It’s worth considering what type of optimism…
All about that (evidence) base
As a psychologist and a coach, as well as someone who has spent the majority of their career working in scientific research, evidence-based techniques are a fundamental component of my coaching and training programmes. But what does this actually mean in practice? Let’s start with what evidence-based coaching is NOT. It’s not an over-reliance on…
Using diagnostics to understand what your team is thinking RIGHT NOW!
Ever wondered what that ‘special sauce’ is that makes a brilliant team? You know when the magic is there, and you definitely know when it’s not there… but how do you quantify and qualify it into tangible components? Psychometrics and team coaching can help with this. The Team Diagnostic Survey is a tool I particularly…
Working with values in your team
We know that it’s important for organisations to set out their values to guide decisions, endorse certain behaviours and help employees to feel connected. But what happens when individual and organisational values are not aligned? Or when different members of the same team have very different core values? For example, if your values are compassion,…
