Taking some time to look out past "what comes next" to "what comes in the future" may also support you and your energy in the present. So many people writing to give you advice on what to do, often going into great specifics. Recognise that I'm also doing the former,...
From Benedict Evans on Twitter, May 3, 2020 Though to some this may seem contradictory given the rise of populist leaders in recent years, I have felt over the last few weeks and months that one of the shifts that is already emerging is that people will value...
Working to find balance for yourself and your team, not being only either "on" or "off". About five weeks ago the UK government announced that they would fund staff put on furlough. Whilst I was really pleased to see them put people first in this way, the "on/off"...
Ouch! When you have limitations, do you complain or go with the flow? When you have limitations imposed on you, do you complain, resist, protest? Or, instead, do you go with the flow and work with what you've got in the moment? I write every day, EVERY day. Today,...
Embrace your limitations and work with what you've got. Another personal blog, the third in three days since I first went to the hospital with a pain in my leg, with learnings around "working with what you've got". To recap, on Sunday morning I went to a major...
More on this in the post: "The map is not the territory" Today's post is inspired by a great conversation with the Piratical Alex Barker (I really look forward to her new book in September) around leading at the edges of the map, and follows yesterday's post advising...
“Henry Ford’s reaction to a consultant who questioned why he paid {note, this was in the 1930s} $50,000 a year to someone who spent most of his time with his feet on his desk. “Because a few years ago that man came up with something that saved me $2,000,000,” he...
"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning."Winston Churchill, The Lord Mayor's Luncheon, Mansion House, November 10, 1942 This line feels so right for where we are right now. For full context of the...
How can we do things better online? Only two months ago I was introduced to Tortoise Media by a client in the West Coast of the USA, a Tortoise founder member. That same day I joined as a member then attended a "ThinkIn" at their newsroom in central London that...
After lockdown, will you go back to the office, or start working remotely? Last week I wrote about working from three time frames through the current environment: What Comes NowWhat Comes NextWhat Comes in the Future For many of us, we have been in lockdown anything...
It is time to focus on what comes next. “Go to where the puck is going, not where it has been”Walter Gretzky, to his son Wayne as a young ice hockey player, later to be known simply as "The Great One" At the moment, many of us are primarily or even exclusively...
3D colorful signpost with five arrows on white background - "opportunity". Simple question to ask today and each day. Ask this for yourself, also ask this to your team if you have the (now common) daily check in on Zoom. For many, even though we live in uncertain...
This image is circulating right now as derivation of a well established model for self-awareness around "Comfort>Stretch>Panic" zones. This current Covid-19 one is valuable as a self-awareness tool so we can move out of fear/panic to more useful places to first...
At the top of the My Writing page where these daily posts are hosted, I say: I get my best ideas from listening to people. Fortunately, that’s my job. I like to say that people are my library, and my daily writing practice is a way to discover what’s in it: new ideas,...
Yesterday I led a group zoom meeting for the #ESMomentum series being created with true entrepreneurial spirit by Entrepreneurial Scotland for and with their members. So many great tools, tips and learning shared, including this one, shared by Dave Stewart and one he...
At times of crisis, a key role for a leader is to set the tone. Be a thermostat, not a thermometer. Yesterday I shared a press conference by Governor Andrew Cuomo in: "Love Wins". Today a video from my friend and business hero Chip Conley from a blog he wrote...
For when you may feel ready to change your perspective, today I share with you a piece of beautiful and soothing wisdom from the wonderful Alan Watts. As I have been writing about and also advising others to do, at this time many of us remain focussed on the present...
For years I loved to watch "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart", which for year after year skewered political idiocy, making serious points with great humour. Every show then finished with Jon saying "here it is, your moment of zen", followed by a short random funny...
In supporting CEOs I have always encouraged being disciplined to have a "one-line job description" of "Keeper of the Vision". That means allowing others to run the business, with the focus of the CEO is purely on ensuring everyone is moving in the right direction...
Viktor Frankl's wisdom, from "Man's Search for Meaning" Over the last week and more, in response to our new global VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) environment, I have shifted my time to give to the community by supporting leaders through zoom meetings,...
Leaders look at a crisis as an opportunity to rise to the occasion. When this is over, and it will be over, we want to look back at this moment and remember the many small acts of kindness done by us and to us.We want to look back this time and remember how we thought...
On a Zoom Meeting yesterday morning with a brilliant and valued friend in Scotland, we both agreed that this is a time for businesses to focus on simply being there for their clients and customers, and to do this from the power of coming from their Purpose and Values....
In my daily writing right now I am very much focussed on how I can help my audience of leaders in this current crisis. First a reminder to book a call with me anytime through the button on my site, I'm here to listen! I'm also now giving some granular tips, such as...
Remember the Brady Bunch? Zoom's "Gallery View" looks like this. Remember the Brady Bunch? Zoom's "Gallery View" looks like this. I've been remote working for many years, but this week feels different, the day after the UK was told to stay home. I was on Zoom calls...
How do we lead from intention? This week I have been actively and instinctively offering my support in an area I feel I can help, see the post: "Who do you call before making a tough decision?". Beyond that, I've also been posting on Twitter and LinkedIn, as well as...
In recent days I've focussed my daily posts on Crisis Leadership, including the longer post: "Act Now". Today's message is for leaders to communicate a simple and clear message. There is endless commentary on every aspect of Coronavirus Covid-19, but Max Roser has...
"I hereby give you permission to pause - for whatever reason, whenever you feel like it, as often as you like." ~ Rob Poynton "I hereby give you permission to pause - for whatever reason, whenever you feel like it, as often as you like." ` Rob Poynton This week my...
As I write this, Covid-19 is spreading rapidly around the world, with nervousness building with a growing number of people. Yesterday I wrote: "Act Now" to give thoughts for leaders on how to act and also how to behave in a crisis. Today I am reminded of a post...
How adaptable are you as a leader to change? As the world faces the impact of Coronavirus, the executive summary of this article is simple: Act Now Let us talk, then, about three things: What is a Black Swan event?To what level can we predict such events?What can we...
Today sharing a recent newsletter from a thinker I admire, Whitney Johnson, author of Disrupt Yourself, as it flows with the current theme here on #Bravery and, in particular around what some may perceive as brave but where the person taking the action doesn't sense...
I love the movie Inception, and one of the key scenes asks a character to take a leap of faith. In that story, the only way to escape the situation is to go beyond rationality and truly take a leap of faith. However, we live in the real world, not the movies, so we...
Read to the end of the post to find out why I believe you can "Say Anything" without it feeling brave, and why it matters in business Yesterday I wrote a short post on the bravery of entrepreneurs, highlighted by the oft-repeated phrase entrepreneurs give when asked...
Regular readers know that I continue to muse on the theme of bravery in leadership, planning to write a "long read" on the topic. One current focus is the idea of an action being perceived by others as brave, but not feeling brave or courageous at all by the person...
one of the stunning courses at Etive Restaurant in Oban Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less travelled by,And that has made all the difference.from "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost So last night I took a wee tour of the West Highlands after a...
What do people say about you when you are not in the room? Reminded of this from a recent post by Chip Conley on Wisdom Well around "EQ" Mentorship, where one question he recommends a mentor asks is: What five adjectives would you like co-workers to use when...
"InnSaei - to see from the Inside Out" - prior blog One of the most valued contributions clients gain from coaching is a simple and profound one. Insights. So, in the space of coaching, where do insights come from? Over many years of coaching, my beliefs around this...