What we're thinking

So let’s get the shameless plug out of the way first: I’m often asked to train and support trainers who run in-house training sessions. Phew, that’s better. Now, having been doing this for several years there are 4 traps I frequently see in-house trainers fall into. Here they are, with my advice on what to… Read more

Very often when people think of working on their communication skills, they’ll say they need to boost their speaking / presentation / influencing skills. Fair enough – those are indeed applications of communication skills – yet I have a sneaking suspicion that the focus is on transmitting more than receiving. I think the most under-rated… Read more

  Hot off the press: Investors in People (IiP) have just published their annual ‘Job exodus trends’ for the UK. The report is based on employee sentiment research conducted in December 2018 with 2000 UK respondents. Being somewhat sceptical, I would imagine that if people were asked in December if they were likely to ‘consider moving… Read more

I often work with groups or individuals on goal-setting. It may be as part of the annual appraisal (yes, there’s a Zoomly bite-sized workshop for that), 1:1 conversations about development and progress, or a coaching conversation. Within the work context, I think it’s a bit simpler to set goals, because when it’s done right, there… Read more

Christmas Whether you’re celebrating with loved ones, hoping it’ll snow, glued to a screen, heading for the sun, missing someone, having a party, travelling for a well-earned break – or wondering where your delivery is – I hope Christmas brings you some cheer and the New Year brings your hopes and dreams. Thank you for… Read more

Whether you’re winding down or still working at full throttle, I hope there’s something in this post that’s just what you need for a quick boost – or a completely new perspective. 2018’s most popular TED talks Want to catch up on TED talks? Here you go – TED’s top 25 of 2018. No, I… Read more

  December is here…and that means Christmas parties. Not just mince pies and mulled wine – but also colleagues, including your boss. I’ve previously posted festive season tips*; thanks to the readers who asked me to get going with this earlier in December. “I read your post the morning after I’d done EVERYTHING you shouldn’t… Read more

Speaking as a Brit, I’m acutely aware that the very word ‘feedback’ can make the toes curl. Those from other countries and cultures may indeed smile. Here we can talk a good game but, when it comes to the crunch, I suspect many people would rather do public speaking than give or get feedback on… Read more

More and more of us are working remotely; some of us some of the time, some of us all of the time. There are pros and cons… What’s great about working remotely? Many of us can now work any time, wherever we are. We might be working at a regional hub, in a hotel or… Read more

Make sure all the words in your visuals can be read easily. Thanks to my friend Andie Hemming for this one. Now it might sound like common sense…but it isn’t common practice. Andie and I heard – and struggled to see – some very clever people give presentations recently, and that was how I tested… Read more