Contemplating the mountains before me, I breathe a deep breath of gratitude. I remind myself how lucky I am to be here, now, in this moment – with the freedom to choose how to show up for the day ahead. The choice isn’t always easy, though. Because the world is full of contradictions. And so […]
A clear purpose is the compass of leadership. It’s your answer to the question: “Why does what I do matter?” Your answer. No-one else’s. And you find it by listening inside – to your head, your heart, and your gut. Look outside yourself and you almost certainly won’t. If you’re not clear, you may end up […]
A significant challenge to impactful leadership is not only the noise around you, but the ‘noise in your head’ – your own biases, assumptions, fears, and doubts – which may distract you from the reality on the ground, disrupt sound decision-making, and undermine your positive impact. The antidote to this is simple (ridiculously simple) but […]
Welcome to my last (occasional) bulletin of the year. These days my writing time is mainly devoted to my book. It’s going slowly. I think I’ve probably deleted more than I’ve written. Who knew that articulating something you know well, and have been working with for years, could be so hard?...
Tomorrow, we move house. Goodbye one very large home. Hello one rather small one. It’s the bit in between that’s hard. The massive physical, mental and emotional transition away from the very special place we’ve called home for the past 11 years...
As today’s war in Ukraine unfolds, it seems that the indomitable fighting spirit of this Cossack warrior is still very much alive. It is coursing through the veins of the people, in huge numbers, fighting for their freedom. This unifying spirit is undoubtedly the nation’s greatest defence...
I first encountered the work of Thich Nhat Hanh in 2006. We were away from home, things were tough, and I’d lost my way. Reading the exquisitely simple teachings of his “Peace is Every Step” was the clear, gentle nudge I needed to start looking at things differently...
So here we are. Another year over, a new one about to begin. And a time, in all the noise, to carve out some quiet space to take stock. As a boss, parent, partner, colleague, friend – in other words, as a leader, ask yourself these questions...
Spilling ginger tea all over yourself might seem an unlikely route to a New Year resolution. But sometimes our reflections are stimulated in the most unlikely ways. Hear what happened today after my favourite ever mug split clean in two as I filled it with boiling water...