Thoughts about leadership

Leadership fascinates me, currently as an Executive Coach and Non-Executive Director and previously in my leadership role in a complex global organisation.  At a macro level, the behaviours and capabilities of an organisation’s leaders have a huge impact on engagement, productivity, morale and retention.  At a human level, for many people how much they enjoy…

I am regularly surprised by people who see Coaching as only ‘remedial’: their thinking seems to be “We might engage a coach if we have an underperformer but not for anything else”. What a missed opportunity! I thought I’d share my thoughts via LI to spread the message more widely that Coaching is a valuable…

Take a break: Good for you and for your team! I’m a huge proponent of the benefits to a leader of taking a break from work: even a long weekend can recharge your batteries and remind you of the important things outside the office – health, family, friends, nature (I could go on…). I also believe…

I’m currently coaching a leader who is tackling an all-too-common issue. She was recently appointed to lead a team where the previous head encouraged an ‘Us vs Them’ attitude. We’re working together on how she can turn this around; we thought sharing this topic in the attached Article on LI might resonate with others and potentially…

In my Executive Coaching practice ‘Feedback’ comes up very regularly. It might be that the leader wants to create a team culture where people are open to giving and receiving feedback. Sometime the leader (particularly a new leader) is uncomfortable giving ‘negative’ feedback. Or the leader wants feedback from their team but it’s just not…

In March I wrote a piece about the ‘Art of Delegation’. A coachee challenged me: “That all sounds great. But what about when I cannot delegate more?” I’m sharing here on LI the exploratory work we did together, as others may be asking themselves the same question. When a leader is struggling with workload my ‘go to’ response…

Delegation is a topic which comes up often in my Executive Coaching practice, even with senior leaders. So I want to share some thoughts which might help leaders or aspiring leaders think constructively about the ‘art’ of delegation: clear reasons to delegate, ways to tackle the barriers holding you back, and considerations for delegating effectively. Delegation…

Some of my coachees are talking about New Year Resolutions. Here’s one I recommend to all leaders (and folks generally!): Make People Feel Valued – it’s easy to do, costs nothing, and can have a huge positive impact. When we feel seen and appreciated, we feel good, we are more engaged and we experience more energy…

I want to share a theme from my experience of coaching leaders: the value of asking questions.  Some might think this relevant only to new leaders.  I’d disagree: often leaders feel they ought to know the answers whereas actually asking the question can be much more impactful. These coachees – like most leaders – want…

As my LI connections know well, I like to share learnings from my Executive Coaching practice, hoping they resonate with others.  Here’s one which is not obvious: Leaders, don’t try to be a hero – your team and boss may not thank you for it. I recently held a tricky coaching session with a leader. …