We are often reminded about the power of gratitude but there is scientific evidence to show that it has both physical and psychological benefits. Benefits that stabilise our heart rate, calm our emotions and generate more optimism. Gratitude and Its Impact on the Brain and Body | Psychology Today Creating a habit of gratitude, like...
When we look at the ever-growing list of capabilities leaders need to lead well and consider the rapidly changing, uncertain and often ambiguous context in which organisations must operate the temptation to give up may be strong. Yet we know that’s not really an option. Of course no one can claim all the capabilities on...
In a working world that is ‘always on’, how comfortable are we in allowing ourselves time out for self-reflection? Though it’s an invaluable investment aren’t we likely to put this on to the ‘get to later’ pile or on the ‘self-indulgent’ (and, therefore, never to be visited) pile. Yet here’s the thing, ‘booking a meeting...
As leaders we may all too familiar with the call for ‘more’. Often accompanied by ‘faster’. The relentlessness of today’s working environment may not always leave time to appreciate what is being achieved already and to count our blessings. This may feel like an old-fashioned notion and yet being able to see the beauty, the...
In any healthy relationship boundaries are really important not because we are seeking to hide or be secretive, quite the opposite in fact because unless we are honest with ourselves about our own needs and capabilities, we cannot be in a healthy relationship with anything or anybody. And that’s the hard part – being willing...
Time for thinking, for reflection, for ordering our thoughts, reprioritising the ‘to do’ list, is often a casualty of the busy-ness of organisational life and its always-on, back-to-back nature. Yet time for reflection is essential to the quality of our leadership decisions and ensuing action. And it’s essential to ensure that pressure remains a useful...
Power is a central theme in our lives yet it has something of a bad rap. With some regularity we see abuses of power – it being wielded in a self-serving and destructive way. Individually we can feel powerless in the face of external factors in the system whether that’s the State, the economy or...
Have you ever thought about why it’s easy to spot those who will one day become great leaders? When younger people enter our orbit in whatever way, we can very often see something in them that tells us they will have an impact. Not necessarily within the hierarchical, corporate and organisation structures. In fact, these...
When we are operating from our wise space, we of course know that whatever is happening in the world, our life, our work, our leadership, there’s always the need for perspective. The value of seeing things from a variety of viewpoints or standpoints enables us to keep a sense of proportion. One of the core...
Integrity is a quality that’s taken as a positive, highly prized and often associated with good leadership. Dictionaries define it as the quality of being honest with adherence to strong moral principles (our understanding of right and wrong). Yet we can be in integrity if our behaviours are consistent with our own morals even if...