Hello everyone, One comment I hear all the time is “I know I should be coaching my team more. I just don’t have the time.” And I completely understand why. Your diary is full, your to-do list never ends, and adding something new feels like a step too far. One thing I’ve come to believe after years of working with managers and running coaching sprints with leadership teams: the time problem is real, but it isn’t actually the root cause that stops people. The real issue runs a bit deeper than a...
10 days ago • 1 min read
Hello everyone, This week my husband and I treated ourselves to a city break in London. As a birthday gift to each other we stayed at Claridge’s in Mayfair, and if you’ve never been, it is everything you might imagine a great five star hotel to be and then some. We walked miles, explored the city, and came back to what felt like a very quiet, very beautiful oasis. The rooms were lovely, the spa serene, we happily wined and dined. But it wasn’t the gorgeous room decor or the thread count that...
17 days ago • 2 min read
Hello everyone, There is something I genuinely love about Easter weekend, not least because of the chocolate. It always feels like the first deep breath of the year. The clocks have gone forward, the evenings are lighter, and something in the air just feels different. After the slog of January, February and March, it feels like we made it through, and things are looking brighter ahead. But just as we are feeling more upbeat, we can find that by April the goals that felt so clear and...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello everyone, I have just got back from two days in London with my husband. A friend of his had invited us to a dinner and wine tasting event, and if I am honest, I was not that fussed. But he really was, so I said yes. But when I did, he immediately started planning more. “Let's not rush back, let's make a proper trip of it”. And I was standing thinking about my diary, about to say no. I cannot give you all of that. I’ve got too much on. Then I caught myself. Because what I was actually...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello everyone, I want to tell you about a workshop I ran not long ago. I was working with a group of very capable, bright, mid to senior level managers in a larger organisation. We got onto the topic of presenting to the Exec. These managers had a monthly reporting cycle. The process was clear: get the pre-read deck out ahead of the meeting to allow the Exec to read it and be able to make the decisions. Everybody knew the deadline. Everybody busted a gut to hit it, because the pre-read had...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello everyone, This week I want to tell you about a manager I had early in my career. He was one of the best I ever worked for. Not because he was the most senior, or the most strategic, but because he never, ever let a development conversation slip. Some managers I've had would have the occasional career chat, usually around appraisal time, when it was on the form and had to happen. It felt like a box being ticked. And then you'd go back to work and nothing much changed. He was completely...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello everyone, Quick question: How much of your work depends on people you don't actually manage? 🤔 If you're like most managers I work with, the answer is probably "most of it." You need input from R&D. Sign-off from finance. Delivery from operations. And none of those people report to you. This is where influence becomes everything. Early in your career, being good at your job is enough. You execute well, you deliver results, you get promoted. But the higher you go, the less that matters...
3 months ago • 1 min read
Hello everyone, The other day, I opened a newsletter from a friend. He’s a business coach who focuses on marketing systems and AI automation. Halfway through, there was this line that stopped me mid-sentence. "You can't read the label from inside the bottle." I'd heard the phrase before. But this time it really got me thinking. Because if ever there was a phrase that captures what my clients repeatedly tell me, it's this. You're so busy in the day-to-day. You're so close to the action. It...
3 months ago • 2 min read
Hi there, I've been running coaching sprint workshops with managers over the past few months, and there's one pattern I keep seeing that honestly breaks my heart a little. When we start, everyone shares their goals. They want to be a confident, respected leader. They want their team to step up. They want to stop drowning in the day-to-day and actually do the strategic work that matters. But then when we talk about coaching, about asking questions instead of giving answers, the same objection...
3 months ago • 2 min read