4 min read
Business planning in a recession with bright spot thinking
Earlier this week, I was working with leaders from a large corporate to set some strategic priorities. Talk quickly turned to how to survive the...
Change and personal development (5)
3 min read
How to care about your job again
If you've woken up today with a sense of dread about what awaits you at your desk, you're not alone. A 2019 Gallup poll found that out of the world's...
3 min read
Setting boundaries around bullsh*t
I've drawn a new boundary around my professional life: no more leadership team coaching.
2 min read
Create systems change
Have you ever started a job and had that new-starter clarity? You're baffled by all the things that don’t make sense and say annoying things in...
6 min read
Why change makes things worse before it makes things better
I recently received a request from Angela, a Wednesday Wisdom reader, to talk about the immediate impact of organisational change on productivity....
2 min read
Wear and tear
I've had a hell of a time with my house lately. After an initial few years of primarily uneventful occupation, she's turned on me in the last couple...
2 min read
Own your outcast status
How it started I left my job as a policy analyst and strategic planner in 2014. I'd been so excited by that job—for lots of reasons. I was the first...
5 min read
Boundaries, burnout, business and #bigrantenergy
I've been ranting my wee head off lately, and it's been an utter delight. I'm trying to channel that energy into pushing as much helpful goodness as...
2 min read
Don't be afraid to narrow down
Little known fact: the more specific you are about what you want, what you'll do, and what you won't do, the more likely you are to get it. When you...
4 min read
Good people and bad systems
Change is hard to talk about, because people tend to feel personally attacked. They have good reason to feel that way. When we talk about the things...
2 min read
3 strategic thinking skills that get you what you want
One of the most exciting modules in the naMBA curriculum is when we talk about systems. We build our problem-solving skills by drawing on the work of...
19 min read
Outrageous Conversations: How to convert controversy into connection
Thank you to everyone who contributed to this article. Your thoughts, links, resources and ideas were invaluable in pulling this piece together. I've...
1 min read
Get outside of yourself
There's an excellent AA meme: "I'm not much, but I'm all I think about."
2 min read
Use your big voice
Last Tuesday, I took my children to see Clementine Ford at the Embassy Theatre here in Wellington. Of all the wonderful things she said, one...
5 min read
Find your why journey update #2
I recently sent out a Wednesday Wisdom about a traumatic time I've experienced in my personal life and business.
1 min read
Throw your raft in the ocean
In an old Buddhist parable, a man is trapped on one side of a rushing river. On this side of the river, there is great danger and uncertainty; on the...
1 min read
Facilitate meaning through experience
I've been lucky to spend some time with Optimal Workshop recently. One of the coolest things about their office is the large library in the main...
3 min read
How to trust people to do a good job: your delegation toolkit
Some of us (cough) have trust issues. Most of those issues are for a good reason. But when it comes to leading teams at work, they can get in the way...
1 min read
4 ways to move fast without breaking things
Hi, I'm Alicia McKay, a serial fast-moving thing-breaker. It's one of my best qualities - I execute ideas quickly and fix them as I go. I'm often on...
7 min read
Stop being nice: 7 reasons why your niceness is dangerous
I have a confession to make: I'm suspicious of nice people.
1 min read
How to make habit change easier
Driving to Palmerston North a couple of years ago, a good friend of mine was explaining what they'd learned in yoga about habit change.
3 min read
Social habits: why it's ok to stay home.
You heard it here first kids, the latest thing is... staying home.
1 min read
How to make your problems useful
There's no way to avoid problems, I'm afraid. Problems are like cockroaches and glitter: even when the world ends, they'll still be there.