blog: news and opinion

The Neuroscience of Wellbeing, Stress and Mindfulness

10th April 2014

A workshop on ‘The Neuroscience of Wellbeing, Stress and Mindfulness’ will take place on Thursday, 19 June 2014 from 13:30 to 17:00 at the Gestalt Centre in London. It will interest coaches, trainers, consultants, HR professionals - indeed anyone who's managing, leading, facilitating or developing others, or providing a service. Neuroscience not only informs us how we - and others - tick, but it is also becoming increasingly recognised as a key tool in the development of high-impact leadership, employee engagement and the management of stress.

Lessons from neuroscience for learning and performance

2nd April 2014

Leaders who know how to optimise the conditions for their own and their people’s learning are going to maximise their chances of success for themselves and their organisations. Senior people – indeed anyone thinking about their career development – who build in the search for working environments and a career path that will maximise their learning opportunities is likely to also maximise their chances of fulfilment and therefore success. And those working across cultures or in multicultural environments who know how to maximise harmony, minimise conflict, bring a curiosity for learning and an attitude of acceptance are also going to be those most likely to develop aligned, creative, productive teams and minimise wasted effort.

Tripping on speed: leaders who want quick results

10th March 2014

The pressure on senior people to work at speed risks disempowerment and threatens high-quality outcomes. Slowing down and reflecting, thus developing insight, can help enable them to create outcomes that are meaningful and sustained.

The neuroscience of wellbeing, stress and mindfulness

20th February 2014

Our next neuroscience event, with academic researcher and qualified coach Dr Geoff Bird,will take place on Thursday 19th June 2014 13.30-17.00, and will explore the neuroscience of wellbeing, stress and mindfulness. Delegates to our workshops to date have included coaches, consultants, trainers, Learning and Development specialists, HR professionals and financial advisors. Further workshops (on the neuroscience of learning and performance and the neuroscience of leadership) - and a session on practical application, will take place during 2014 and early 2015.

Career strategy: purpose and meaning, values and strengths

6th February 2014

New Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has pinpointed meaning at work as a fundamental goal because that’s ‘what makes the best work happen’. In my career development coaching with executives and senior managers, questions of meaning and purpose, values and beliefs, drivers and obstacles, emotional awareness and a capacity to situate yourself in your systems, are core to career focus or refocus.

The coaching contract: what does it mean for the client?

27th January 2014

Lindsay’s article on what really goes on in contracting has been published in Coaching at Work magazine, January-February 2014 issue. The article explores the fact that, especially for coaching clients new to coaching, the meaning of the contract only becomes clear once they're experiencing the coaching and its impact. Perhaps the contracting process itself would benefit from being more reflective.

The multi-generational workforce - and diversity of pace

23rd January 2014

In most organisations baby-boomers (and older) work alongside Generations X and Y. Their attitudes to pace can divide them: Xers and Yers often resist the idea of slowing down long enough to reflect while the baby boomers are more inclined to reflect. The generations are most effective when they’re aware of and respect others’ assumptions and world views - and coaches are most effective when they can enter the client’s world.

Teams, listening and connection

9th December 2013

Leaders are sometimes solitary and lonely figures, disconnected from their team . Leaders who who listen to their teams see in return greater engagement, better retention rates and bigger, more long-lasting results.

Extremes of uncertainty in coaching

29th November 2013

Lindsay's article on extremes of uncertainty in coaching has been published in Coaching at Work magazine, November-December 2013 issue. The article explores what works when clients find themselves adrift, or when the foundations of their careers or their lives have seemed to disintegrate.

Optimism: a route to high performance

11th November 2013

Humans tend to overestimate the likelihood of positive events, and underestimate the likelihood of negative events. Optimists work harder and longer hours than pessimists, which may account for their higher pay - and optimism has been linked to achievement in education, business, sport and electoral politics. This doesn't seem to fit with our society's tendency to drive for perfectionism, condemn mistakes, and focus on what's gone wrong.