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2 min read

Fast decisions in uncertain times

When our future is uncertain and our workload is high, we need leaders who can make big decisions fast. As we start the COVID leadership autopsies...

3 min read

Values-based living: the hardest and easiest path to peace

When I was 25, I left my job with two kids, a mortgage to pay, and a husband on apprentice wages. I'd left my policy job in frustration, looking for...

3 min read

Fear is universal but action is personal

Being a person is pretty scary, to be honest. If you're a mildly anxious human like me, you might face a frequent war with your brain as it churns...

2 min read

What got you here won't get you there

Apparently doing the same thing and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. I think that applies to 'doing more of the same thing'...

2 min read

Make peace with problems

Let me paint you a picture of a workshop I facilitated recently. Fourteen senior leaders crowd around the boardroom table of an artful...

2 min read

Money isn’t everything: how to uncover false constraints

What would you do if you won Lotto? I bet you know the answer to that question, and that you've had this conversation at least half a dozen times...

1 min read

Do what scares you.

What are you afraid of?

1 min read

How to tame talkfests: focus prompts for frustrated facilitators

Man, I get sick of people talking sh*t. To be fair, it’s an occupational hazard. I run strategy and leadership workshops, where people are used to...

5 min read

Your 2020 digest

It would be easy to treat 2020 a bit like a regretful purchase – you know, when you throw the receipt away without looking at it or stuff your...

4 min read

How to shape a fulfilling career

If you crave meaningful work, it might not happen by accident. Here's how to shape a fulfilling career by asking five questions. You spend a lot of...

1 min read

Take risks to make progress

Most turtles live almost half of their lives inside their shell. Every time they sense an enemy, or the weather’s no good, they retreat and wait. I...

3 min read

Get your meetings under control: 6 questions to help you banish back-to-backs

Everyone is having too many meetings. In many teams, people click from one conversation to another, becoming paradoxically more bored and overwhelmed...

2 min read

6 ways to stay on track when things turn to shit

When I was at university, I was a broke single mum. Funds were tight, and I was a militant budgeter. I’d sit down and create detailed household...

4 min read

That restructure will not fix your organisational culture

In a client mentoring session on Friday, I was looking forward to hearing how a job interview had gone. After an extended secondment and a long...

6 min read

Why change gets worse before it gets better

Angela, a Wednesday Wisdom reader, asked me to write about the immediate impact of organisational change on productivity. She wrote:

1 min read

Don't worry about your culture

I hear a lot about organisational culture. It’s pretty trendy, and seems to be blamed for a full spectrum of ills at work. Makes sense, it’s nice and...

1 min read

Freshen up your focus

If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that priorities shift. As we returned to our homes, spent more time with our families, watched our health more...

2 min read

How to convert a cynic: assume positive intent

As a facilitator, I can spot a cynic a mile away. Their body language is pure resistance: folded arms, suspicious expressions, and deep sighs. They...

4 min read

Public sector leadership in quiet times: readiness

I wrote a Wednesday Wisdom last week, that I had to do an emergency withdrawal for on Tuesday night, after the Prime Minister’s COVID announcement. I...

1 min read

Practice makes autopilot

I invest in professional development for three days every three months and head off to business school in Australia. Those three days are always the...

3 min read

How to find your calm

“You should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day, unless you are too busy, then you should sit for an hour.” -Old Zen saying I’ve talked a lot...

3 min read

How to take calculated risks: 3 key steps

Fear Is Like Alcohol .. because it makes parties more interesting. JUST KIDDING.Fear is like alcohol because it clouds our judgement. And when we...

2 min read

The problem with authentic leadership

Authenticity is all the rage right now. Companies all over the world are proudly proclaiming how inclusive they are: "bring your whole self to work!"...

3 min read

3 things you can do to make your meetings suck less

Because they probably suck… and it’s probably not your fault. Why are so many workshops and meetings that are supposed to be important, so hopeless?...