Giving great presentations of any kind, is an invaluable skill to have. It was with pride that I achieved my Advanced Communicator Gold award at Casterbridge Speakers this week, as part of the Toastmasters International programme. There has been much learning as I reflect on my journey to this point, which I would like to […]

There has never been a more relevant time for values-based leadership. Corporate scandals, terrorist threats, office politics, fake news and broken relationships have created low trust in our everyday lives. The increasing gap between stated values and implementation is leading to growing cynicism about integrity and huge uncertainty for the future. If we ignore our

Are effective meetings prevalent enough? A recent survey conducted by Moo Print Ltd has shown that Britain is obsessed with meetings as the average worker is now spending 213 hours a year — or 26 working days — attending them. What is it costing our economy when people are spending this amount of time of

The advances made in the last few decades have been rapid and incredible; bringing us amazing results, but managing technology etiquette is becoming increasingly difficult. Smart methods of communication have evolved so fast there is a downside, which we humans are struggling to address. If we do not want Smart to stand for Stealer of

How good are you at saying no? One aspect which contributes to people feeling overwhelmed at work is not saying no. This simple two letter word can cause serious complex problems if not used appropriately. Why is such a little word, so hard to say? People I coach tell me it is because they don’t

Overwhelmed is one of the most frequent words I hear from clients these days. It seems that more and more people feel overwhelmed by their workload and life in general. The impact of this is more stress, burnout, poorer quality decision making, reduced creativity, broken relationships, reduced self esteem and less productivity. The important things

When was the last time you had a laugh? I don’t mean a quick chuckle, but a really good belly laugh, where you almost cried (or did!). They say ‘Laughter is the best medicine’, and is very infectious, fun, free, and easy to use. ‘A day without laughter is a day wasted’ Charlie Chaplin ‘Tis

  Do you believe that brain power, your people’s capacity to think, is the most valuable resource in your business? I do, because whilst finance, your people and your product or services are vital, without brain power, they will be ineffectually utilised. Your people can turn up and work, but do they bring the full

Recruiting and retaining people are essential aspects to grow your business. You need solid foundations to be a preferred employer and build a motivated and engaged team. People are dedicated to grow the business in a culture of continuous improvement when they are engaged. The team will be proud to take ownership of future success,

It can be difficult to ensure assertive behaviour in all areas of your life. Barriers to assertiveness can be fear of conflict, upsetting people, or coming across as bossy. It can also be aggressive approaches that are thought to be assertive. I find that many people misunderstand what assertiveness is. It is a critical aspect

Your wedding speech could be the most important speech you ever give. You want to make sure it is memorable for all the right reasons. A bad speech can ruin an otherwise perfect day. Whether you’re the groom, best man, father of the bride, or other speaker, you want to be sure your speech is

It may seem a strange concept that there can be business learning from cryptic crosswords. From my experience, I believe there are some useful pointers to problem solving and innovation. This is backed by research carried out at Buckingham University. 10 Ideas for Business Learning From Cryptic Crosswords and clues to solve. A-D (Provided by

It is vitally important to provide the right tools for new supervisors. It gives them the confidence to do the job to their true potential. I am very passionate about employers giving them this critical support. ‘Accidental leaders’ can crash and burn through no fault of their own. Each supervisor may need slightly different tools