I volunteer for a global movement called Sidewalk Talk. We set up chairs in the streets and offer to listen to passers by. We don’t solve problems. We don’t give advice. We simply offer non-judgemental, empathic listening; the opportunity to sit with a stranger and be heard. Newcastle is at 55°N latitude. We had one
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Life is a roller coaster: An endlessly undulating, twisting journey of highs and lows, joy and sadness, aspiration and despair. As the Buddhists so neatly put it; suffering and happiness are part of the human condition and both are transitory: No mud, no lotus flower. Part of the journey, then, is to more fully embrace and
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The coaching marketplace has grown significantly over the past 15 or so years that I’ve been in it. Not least in the diversity of the coaching offerings out there. Perhaps one defining principle that all have in common, though, is that coaching is about change. Yet despite this, could coaching professionals themselves have a tendency
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There is no doubt that the world we live in is one of complex, ever-changing uncertainty. Nothing new about that – it’s the nature of the universe! Yet we are told that disruptive change in business, the pace of technological development and the change in our global ecosystem is accelerating like never before. Our world
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My colleague and I recently ran a little coaching experiment. We offered 60-minute coaching sessions to 10 leaders from different industries, countries and age groups without cost. Why? So we could find out more about the challenges leaders are facing and whether our coaching style could help. So what did most leaders want to
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Sometimes my work involves a lot of travel. The work itself is inspiring. I meet amazing people, striving to make a difference in their workplaces and I visit some wonderful parts of the world. The travel, on the other hand, is not always as inspiring. Take my most recent business trip. I was one of
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Last summer I was invited to work with the GB World Orienteering Championships team as a ‘guest’ coach. Excited by memories of my youthful sporting days and the thrill of international competition I packed my bags full of anticipation and set off for the forests of Sweden. Arriving at camp GB, I felt like I’d
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I’ve taken a month’s sabbatical in May. I can highly recommend it. After the busiest start to the year ever, I was digging deep into the emergency reserves. Time to refill the tanks and focus on replenishing activities. Space to think, time to reflect on my practice and invest in my CPD. The equation is
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I don’t much like the idea of New Year’s Resolutions. There’s something implicit in all the ‘New Year, New You’ messaging that says, “You’re not good enough.” It appeals to our old friends The Self Limiting Beliefs – those external judgements and expectations that we’ve internalised until they are nagging inner voices, constantly telling us
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I’m a coach. I go to work aspiring to create an environment for my clients where they are empowered to unfold, think free, and become the very best versions of themselves. I offer full unconditional attention, freedom from judgement, assumptions or expectations and I watch as their brilliant minds shine bright. Sometimes I draw
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