The career path that is truly yours rarely arrives as a neat sequence of steps. Sometimes there is a proven route. Law, medicine, engineering—clear milestones, predictable outcomes. For a long time, that was enough. It isn’t anymore. Most careers now [...] Read more
Inspiration
Clients will often say ‘it’s not who I am’ as a convincing excuse to do nothing differently. But the things we might want to be known for – being reliable, being strategic or even being inspiring – are not personality traits. They’re behaviours. Chosen. Repeated. Left to my own devices, I’d happily lie on the sofa all day reading a book. I can also lose hours without noticing, completely absorbed in what I’m doing. But that’s not how I choose to show up. The version of me most people experience is someone who is energised, prepared and [...] Read more
Last Sunday I completed a duathlon. For some people that may not sound remarkable. But for me it was a genuine shove out of my comfort zone. It wasn’t that I was unfit. I go to the gym regularly and [...] Read more
I was delighted to learn this quote yesterday: It’s better to sweat in training than bleed in battle. Evidently, it’s a military and martial arts mantra which my yoga teacher shared. The idea is simple: Preparation absorbs the pain early, [...] Read more
I am gripped by Gordon Ramsay’s new Netflix series, the one that follows him behind the scenes running his vast global empire. It is a masterclass in leadership. When we look at public figures, it’s easy to get distracted by the [...] Read more
As ever, I was catching up with my beloved Graham Norton Show this week. Kaley Cuoco was on the sofa, laughing about her extreme competitiveness. So competitive, in fact, that she wanted to win “best celebrity on the sofa” on [...] Read more
Most communication problems at work aren’t about skill. They’re about presence. I was saying to someone recently: you are not your thoughts. We know that because we can see them. We notice the commentary running in the background – rehearsing [...] Read more
One of the most powerful tools in coaching is to repeat back what someone has said. It allows the other person to examine their thinking. Probably the most common phrases I repeat back are: ‘I have no time’ or ‘I [...] Read more
Yesterday, I was totally blown away by the latest scientific research on exercise and nutrition specifically for women. And it got me thinking. Most people are informed, but not curious. They outsource their thinking to science, experts, and “best practice”, [...] Read more