Business is simple, people are complex. Perhaps business is not quite simple, but where it comes down to hard numbers, it can be complicated, but…
OpenLeadership
Eating Pasta and the Art of Balance
Some whimsy to start your week. Balance in all things is an important part of self-leadership.
Coaching Tip: Choose Empathy over Sympathy
Sympathy means “I feel what you feel”, whereas Empathy means “I get what you feel”. Choose Empathy over Sympathy.
How will you know if someone welcomes your hug?
As people begin to meet up in person, for those of us who love to give and receive hugs, how do we know if people…
Becoming the person you need to be
I had this artwork created for me by Hugh McLeod of Gaping Void. With the words “Becoming the person you need to be… is an…
Can you listen without judgment?
Coaches listen, am sure you know that is part of the role, but how clear are you (are all of us!) on what it really…
Take your Time, Give your Time
Inspired by a short post from Seth Godin, today a thought. I give my time to a lot of people, I love to do so. However, in order to be able to do that, I also have to be rigorous about not allowing people to take my time. Oh, and those who read regularly know I do...
When to keep a tradition, when to change it
So this weekend summer finally arrived in the UK. I put a hammock up and deeply enjoyed lying in it for a time to relax. To me I've always loved hammocks, always loved lying in them to celebrate summer weather (or, tbh, "christmas breeze" weather in Cayman when it is...
Slow it down
Slow it down, Angie come back to bedRest your arms, and rest your legsSlow it Down - The Lumineers A three day weekend here. I've chosen to slow it down this weekend, plus to simplify. No planning, no lists of things to do. Summer has belatedly arrived here in London,...
A few “mixing desk” thoughts
Nearly three years ago, in "Learning from The Beatles – “Mixing” your Leadership", I wrote: In supporting leaders over many years, I love to distil to simplicity, to allow them to focus on their priorities, their message, their context. As Da Vinci said: “Simplicity...
Determine roles first, then fit people to them
When building a business, determine the roles the business needs, then fit, develop, hire the right people to fit those roles. Sounds obvious? Well, it is, and it works, yet it seems so often that businesses default to the reverse, assessing individuals first, then...
Outsiders outside
Roland Harwood and I, is this summer thinking about finally starting? Yesterday I met up in person outside (do you know the location?) for a random coffee with the founder and leader of the We are Liminal community, Roland Harwood. We talked about Liminality, with a...
Changing your perspective by changing your timeframe
The last stars will die out 120 trillion years from now (at most) followed by 10^106 years of just black holes. Condensed, that's like the universe starting with 1 second of stars and then a billion billion billion billion billion billion billion years of just black...
What is the single most important message for your audience?
What is the single most important message for your audience? Yesterday I sat with a client as they talked through the questions they had received for a "in conversation with" video they were about to film later that day. There were about eight questions around a...
A 2×2 Matrix for Dogs
More genius from the mind of Steve Chapman, "Playful with not knowing" Sometimes we take leadership, strategy, management etc etc WAY too seriously. So, today, genius from the mind of Steve Chapman and his insights into the mind of his dog Poppy and, let's face it,...
What will your tombstone legacy be?
My late mentor and friend Ed Percival, has left a truly powerful "tombstone legacy" through many you have learned from him and share what they have learned. Among the many phrases wrongly attributed to Winston Churchill, though losing none of the power of the...
The most powerful voice in the universe is yours
The most powerful voice in the universe is yours because the most important words in the universe are yours. Self-talk matters. Choose wisely.Gregg Parini, Head Swimming Coach & Professor at Denison University Concise wisdom from Gregg Parini in a tweet this past...
Doing nothing often leads to the very best of something
“People say nothing is impossible. But I do nothing every day. Doing nothing often leads to the very best of something.”Winnie the Pooh Today when this post goes out at 8am on Friday, I will be disconnected. The night before I'll have gone to a country inn, where I've...
Beware of sensory overload
A personal story today to make a point for all of us to be aware of around allowing ourselves to experience sensory overload and the impact that can have. Oh, and also a recommendation for those who suffer restricted hearing, one which may make a massive positive...
Intermission
If you are as old or older than me you may remember intermissions in plays, opera, even movies over 2.5 hours (no, they didn't make you sit through three hour plus movies without a break). Sometimes it is good to pause, to reflect, to build anticipation for what is to...
Docendo discimus – by teaching, we learn
In the mid-1990s, in my late 20s, the Squash Club in Cayman was looking to reinvigorate their junior programme. I was on the board of the club at the time and myself and another member, the late and dearly missed Derek Tyler, agreed to get this started. At the time, I...
What would your Desert Island Discs be?
It occurred to me to write this post when I most recently listened to what to me is the greatest cover version of all time, David Bowie covering himself with the version of Cat People on the Let's Dance album, featuring the epic production of Niles Rodgers and even...
What gift would you give a 14-year-old?
Me and my boys in the Alps, August 2018 (they were 14, 20 and 24 at the time). For years my gifts to them have been time and experiences together, though the 14 year old wasn't too sure about the height of the chairlift 😉 Inspired yesterday by my friend Ben Brabyn...
We have inside us our whole potential
When we plant a rose seed in the earth, we notice that it is small, but we do not criticize it as “rootless and stemless.” We treat it as a seed, giving it the water and nourishment required of a seed. When it first shoots up out of the earth, we don’t condemn it as...
Add perspective by consciously not knowing the detail
These two brief experiences I am reflecting lead me to feel that you can "add perspective by consciously not knowing the detail". When I trained as a coach, one core element was learning to listen for CONTEXT, rather than CONTENT. Today a contextual observation that...
Are you a ONE or a TO?
Wayne Goldsmith is one of the top minds in swimming and writes prolifically around both technical skills and mindset. One article is entitled: "The 5 Superpowers of Performance” and lists them as: PassionPersistencePracticePatiencePeace Around the last one, Peace, he...
Work is love made visible
Work is love made visible.And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.For if you bake bread with indifference, you bake a bitter bread...
I am energized by entrepreneurs
I am energized by entrepreneurs. My instagram post tagging the great guys at S&T Mobile Car Wash. An obvious statement, perhaps, but so often reminded of it. This week, for example, I had the guys at S&T Car Wash come to wash my car first thing in the morning....
Focus on “how much is enough?”
The word "Enoughism" even has a podcast now 🙂 Today's Leadership tip is to focus on "how much is enough?". On a personal level, years ago I shifted focus to what I used to call more of a "minimalist" lifestyle, but a lot of those who talk about minimalism are less...
Repeating themes – the map is not the territory
The universe, she will keep repeating the lessons to you over and over, in different forms, until you are ready to learn themAn oft-repeated lesson to me by my mentor Ed Percival As a friend reminded me of recently, I do like to repeat themes, each time looking at...
Be aware of your biases
The lack of awareness is particularly strong around our biases. There are many types of biases. Image (c) Sketchplanations "Awareness is the greatest agent to change" This quote comes from mentor and friend Suki Laniado Smith, a wonderful coach and guide. Without...
Spend first then tax later, and learn from Jamaica
From an epic twitter thread from the Bank of Jamaica **WARNING - some Economics geekery follows** My favourite podcast (yes, even more so than the bickering of Simon Mayo and Mark Kermode on Wittertainment ) is by David McWilliams. This week David showed himself, as...
Get clear on the WHY and the V2MOM method
Get clear on the WHY and the V2MOM method. Love the way @benioff uses a method that a) cascades down through @salesforce, b) is transparent,…
Three ways to “buy” happiness
Image by Jan Buchczik for Arthur Brooks Thanks to one of my favourite deep readers and thinkers, Georgie Loxton, for sharing in her latest newsletter an article by Arthur Brooks called: "How to buy happiness". Broadly, the piece talks about how money can only buy...
Get Unstuck with this approach to risk and impact
How to approach risk and impact to get "unstuck". Approach to Risk - a Shirlaws Group tool Some of the most powerful learning I have had in my career came from being an active part of Shirlaws for years. In addition to deep training as a coach, the business tools and...
Let me help you get “Unstuck”
Things change, but the need to get unstuck is always there for some in some way. I help people get "Unstuck". A common question people ask when they meet for the first time is "what do you do?". As my role isn't common, sometimes I simply give a concise answer to one...