The 4-day work week is becoming more popular these days, following several trials in various countries. There are a few characteristics of the 4-day work week which I find contribute to its success. In this episode, I look at these characteristics and how we can apply them to any workplace, even if you aren’t lucky enough to have a 4-day work week!…

Regular reflection is generally regarded as a great thing to be doing, but I’ve found that the majority of leaders (that I speak to anyway) don’t do it! That’s why I created The Useful Thinking Journal, which is a journal aiming to help you reflect in a structured way, and turn those reflections into real action so you can improve, or keep achievin…

Many thoughtful leaders find themselves feeling guilty at work. Not because they’ve necessarily done anything wrong – more that they are heaping pressure on themselves and suffering under the weight of expectation. In this episode, I look at the common sources of guilt and introduce a simple process you can follow to unravel these feelings and feel…

You might think of unproductive workplaces as ones where people aren’t doing much. I’ve found it’s quite the opposite – often people are running around madly… being busy. In this episode, I take a look at the cost of an unproductive workplace (other than just the money) and some of the common signs that we might hear that make it a bad place to be!…

Bashing the boss is a favourite pastime for many employees. We don’t want to be a boss that’s worthy of this sort of treatment, so in this episode I take a look at some of the common reasons why people generally complain about their boss. Then we can do things differently and give them fewer things to complain about! Like the Show? Please Leave a R…

Talk to many employees, and they’ll tell you that their boss is one of their biggest time management challenges. So is this the case when it comes to your leadership? In this episode, I take a look at whether you might be time management problem for your team, and what to do about it. Interested in working with me? If you're interested in potential…

Reflection has significant benefits for leaders, but I find that many leaders don’t engage in reflection very often. In this episode, I’ll take a look at the benefits of reflection and some of the issues that people encounter with it. Then, I’ll outline some practical steps to implement a reflective practice for yourself (and keep it up!) Like the …

Having a sense of purpose is critical according to several motivation theories and models. So how do we help our people find it? In this episode, I take a look at some practical ways that you can assist your team to find their sense of purpose. It’s not our responsibility to find it for our team, but we can help to create the right environment. Lik…

Getting out of your comfort zone is a worthwhile thing to do. But being out of your comfort zone all the time is stressful and draining. So when it comes to leadership, when should we make the effort to get out of our comfort zone? I take a look at this topic in this episode. Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like this episode or the s…

“Quiet quitting” is a relatively recent term that describes people doing the bare minimum at work. They aren’t exactly quitting, but they’re no longer going “over and above” for their organisation. In this episode, I take a look at whether this is a real problem at all… and whether simply leading better could be the solution. Like the Show? Please …

Thoughtful leaders have the positive quality of being… well… thoughtful. This can be a great thing, but it can also come with challenges of overthinking and rumination which aren’t at all helpful. In this episode, I take a look at some research-based ideas that might help when you are struggling to get out of an unhelpful thinking rut. Like the Sho…

Having career conversations with your team members can make a huge difference in leadership. However, many leaders don’t make the time for them and I think they’re missing an opportunity. In this episode, we’ll take a look at the benefits of career conversations, how to have them effectively and some of the reasons why many leaders don’t have them……

Displaying vulnerability takes courage, especially when you’re in a leadership role. Many leaders feel an expectation to know all the answers or give the perfect directions, or to display the “stiff upper lip” mentality and show resilience in the face of any challenge. In this episode, we’re going to look at the potential benefits of showing vulner…

It’s easy to fall prey to some common leadership excuses that stop us from taking action. But… doing nothing is a choice like any other! In this episode I discuss some common excuses I hear for putting up with bad behaviour or poor performance. Do any of them sound familiar? Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like this episode or the sh…

Dealing with people problems in a team can be stressful and frustrating. But to manage them effectively, you need to demonstrate persistence! So in this episode, I take a look at some point to keep in mind that may help you feel a little more positive about your situation. Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like this episode or the show…

Most of us don’t feel like we’re very inspiring. We tend to leave that to the “celebrity” leaders out there. But wait a minute – being an inspiring leader might be easier than you think! In this episode I take a look at why being inspiring is important, and some simple ways you might go about it. Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like …

Many people are looking for one thing: a perfect way to have a challenging conversation without people getting upset or saying the wrong thing. Unfortunately, this doesn’t exist, and a challenging conversation will always be uncomfortable! In this episode, I take a look at some principles to apply to challenging conversations, instead of focusing o…

“Pick your battles” is pretty good advice. Unless you use this statement to avoid tackling important issues, when you should be trying to solve them. In this episode, I take a look at some guidelines to help you decide whether you’re actually practicing avoidance, or wisely picking your battles. Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like t…

We know that communication is an important leadership skill. However, I think we sometimes get stuck on the speaking and writing more than the listening. In this episode, I offer some ideas of how you might listen better at work, and why this can be so important. The DISC Model Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like this episode or the…

I think there is a difference between displaying confidence and being confident. One is within your control, the other isn’t. In this episode, I take a look at how you might start to display confidence in leadership from a simple starting point: noticing. Like the Show? Please Leave a Review! ✅ If you like this episode or the show in general, pleas…

Hearing “it’s not my job” from a team member can be frustrating, and it’s a common occurrence in many workplaces. But before we blame the team member, it’s worth thinking about the possible reasons for this statement. In this episode, I take a look at some of the common causes of this behaviour and what you can do about it. Apply For Your Complimen…

I’m a big fan of using self-assessment (or psychometric) tools to help people understand more about themselves and each other. However, they aren’t perfect and we need to use them with a bit of caution. In this post, I take a look at some of the things to watch out for and clarify when you’re using these types of tools for your team. Like the Show?…

Being assertive is important in leadership, because it helps us to look out for our own needs and those of our team. But it doesn’t come naturally to everyone, and we can fall into non-assertive habits. In this episode, I take a look at some tips to appear more assertive, based on tweaking the language that we use. Like the Show? Please Leave a Rev…

I find that many thoughtful leaders are introspective and often stuck in their own heads. It goes with the territory of being thoughtful, I suppose! This can be problematic if we start to worry excessively about work. So in this episodes, I’ve collected some tips that have helped me over the years and hopefully they can help you too. Like the Show?…

Company values have been around for years, but they can certainly attract a lot of cynicism. If they are just a poster on the wall which nobody reads, they probably aren’t doing much good. However, I think they can be valuable when you’re trying to get lots of people working in the same direction! In this episode, I take a look at why many people d…