When things are broken and struggling at work, who are you going to call? Job Breakers! (with apologies to Ghost Busters). The ‘creative destruction’ cycle needs a particular brand of courage and compassion. The Breaker may not win friends, but they may revitalise a failing organisation. As a ‘Breaker’, how does Alan Joyce measure up and what lessons can we take from his experience?
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Rejection and failure - a leader’s pathway out
Have you ever experienced failure at work? Perhaps a rejection? Maybe things seemed bleak and everything you tried didn’t work. Deflated, discouraged. These are not fun times. But they could be the start of something amazing.
Read MoreAI and ChatGPT: A CEO's Secret Weapon for Enhanced Leadership
One of the most asked questions of Chat GPT for CEOs is, “How do I improve my leadership skills?” With the spectre of recession, tighter budgets, and ever increasing workloads, it makes sense to make use of tools at your fingertips. Chat GPT is one of these. In this very practical article, you’ll get step by step instructions on how to improve your communication and influence, emotional intelligence, productivity, and decision-making.
Read MoreHow to change other people’s behaviour
Does someone’s behaviour frustrate you? As a leader, we often see what needs to change, while others may not. Here’s how to focus on the six layers of behaviour change.
Read MoreStretch your thinking for better leadership
If we are to contend with what’s coming, then we need to embed what’s most important to help guide us through. And for that, we need guardrails: ethics and values. So, let’s stretch our thinking with some useful guardrails.
Read MoreGenerations at work - leadership considerations
Much has been said about how generations at work affect culture. In this month’s article, I share the leadership insights to help us navigate the intersection of generations, technology and culture.
Read MoreLeadership for the Future - 7 skills you need
There are so many amazing things happening in the world right now. Yes, there is also travesty. Our work as leaders is to envision a future we wish to inhabit, and work towards it.
We’ll need some critical skills to get there. Here are seven of the most important.
Read More3 leadership strategies to start the new year with a bang
The new year offers optimism and a fresh spirit. As leaders, we can capitalise on that energy and set ourselves up for success with our teams. There are three major components to address: people, task, and self. Here are simple strategies to get momentum.
Read MoreHow to make tough decisions under endless leadership pressure
Making decisions is a leader’s bread and butter. Making them under endless pressure in constantly moving conditions can wear down the best of us. Here’s how to improve your decision-making leadership skills.
A simple framework for leadership reflection
We’re half way through 2021! It’s time to take stock, adjust course as required. Here is a simple framework for leadership reflection.
Read MorePerspective: an essential leadership principle
How big is your perspective? How deep, far and wide do you think? Expanding perspective is a fundamental leadership principle we need to practice. Like doing drills for your favourite sport.
Read MoreA leadership framework for personal and organisational resilience
Resilience is a hot topic because we’ve all needed it. It’s not something you just pick up; it can be cultivated. It’s an essential leadership framework.
Read MoreLeadership principles for surviving complexity
Our brains are complex things, but not great at handling complexity. We need a few key leadership principles to help us make sense of the fast paced hot mess that is our current leadership context.
Read MoreLeadership lessons in emotional management
Learning to experience and express feelings without being carried away by them is a missing critical leadership skill - the skill of being REAL.
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Read MoreLeadership Practice #2: The Practice of Self Love
I asked my client what his top three values were. He said: “Work and family.”
Eyebrows raised, I waited for the third. It didn’t come.
He said, “That’s it. That’s my life. Work and family. Right now, in that order. I live in a constant state of guilt. When I’m at work, I feel like I should be at home. When I’m reading my daughter a bed-time story, my mind is on the work piled up that will take me to midnight. I feel like 10% of my life is actually mine.”
Tears welled up.
He was playing a high stakes game. If he didn’t deliver at work, there wouldn’t be a job. No job, no money, and that puts family life at risk. And the more time he spent at work, the less time he spent with family, the more unhappy his wife became. High stakes indeed: job and marriage on the line.
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