Celebrating 100 Episodes
Lessons for Leaders
Welcome to Lessons for Leaders. Can you believe it’s episode 100? The goal has always been to share lessons, learnings, tips and advice and even when things got tough with it, I’ve enjoyed it more and I’m proud to be able to say I got to 100. Many of my regular listeners will know that my girls are the reason I do what I do and my eldest girl is about to make me a Granny next month so it seems like a good time to pause the episodes for a while. This last one is a very special episode, with my other amazing girl joining me at the mic to ask some of the questions you, my listeners...
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How to Persuade Leaders to Invest in Wellbeing
Lessons for Leaders
This week I'm sharing top tips and conversations that I have frequently with people in organisations to help them know how to persuade leaders to invest in wellbeing. We're covering: What to do to persuade your leaders The 3 R’s that I like to go with organisations I work with. Why we need to look at revenue in different ways and I dive into specifics here to give you a head start. How to highlight the risks to an organisation Why it’s important to include reputation in this persuasive detail too. It’s easy to say wellbeing can help to reverse employee burnout and reduce stress,...
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Why a Good Leader Will Give Teams Autonomy
Lessons for Leaders
This week I'm joined by Gemma Woodward who is People & Culture Manager for Netsells in York. We are talking about leadership and autonomy. Listen in for: What are the benefits of allowing autonomy. How leaders can encourage autonomy in their teams. Where leaders get it wrong with a top down leadership and how it can affect their people and the organisation what's one key thing that people should remember about autonomy Key comments and take-aways A top down leadership can create a fear of coming forward and fear of making mistake, their ideas and decisions might...
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Why Leaders Need to Get Back to the Floor
Lessons for Leaders
What on earth is back to the floor? I start with that and why I'm covering the subject (it was inspired by my wonderful friend and leader Tina. So I'm also covering today: Why is it important to know first hand what’s happening on your shop floor Some real life examples and stories of how back to floor worked, and how it didn’t One really, really important question to ask yourself I share stories from my experience in corporate and Tina's feedback too to give real life examples - some are funny, some are lovely, one is a little shocking! Here's one of the key things .......
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Why it's Worth Investing in Stress Awareness
Lessons for Leaders
This week on the podcast I'm talking about Why it's Worth Investing in Stress Awareness. I wonder if you've ever had a time when you've ever felt stressed and known what would help ... but not bothered to do it???? This is just one of the reason why I'm sharing information that can help you make a decision on whether it's worth investing in stress awareness. I cover: What is causing Stress in the workplace? How Will Stress Awareness Help Your Organisation? How Does Stress Impact Productivity? Is it Worth Investing in Stress Awareness? Ways I can support you or help for you to do...
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Lockdown Lessons for Leaders
Lessons for Leaders
Two years since the UK locked down from the Covid 19 virus. In fact pretty much the world locked down. It changed so many things About how we live How we work Connections & communication Wellbeing – what were thankful for – fear / perspective Resilience Have you looked back at those pictures from cities that were empty and streets that were bare? I know I have. There were bits that I loved, bits I didn’t love. There was a significant difference in how people viewed the lockdown. Some loved it. Some hated it. For some it was...
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Supporting Female Leaders
Lessons for Leaders
In honour of International Women's Day, I’m here to give ideas of ways that you can support women in leadership roles. There can be a number of reasons why there are less women than men in leadership roles. Data from the House of Commons found that companies led by women outperform those led by men - but despite this, we're very far from achieving gender parity in the workplace I share information about Break the Bias Unconscious biases, opinions, beliefs are formed early in our childhood. We learn these from family, friends, people of authority that are social...
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Why Empathy is Crucial for Great Leaders
Lessons for Leaders
This week I'm talking to you about why empathy is crucial for great leaders. I cover : What is empathy Why does it matter in leadership Whether empathy can be learned How it can improve performance, create connections and What you can do to be more empathic. Why empathy is crucial for great leaders and what is empathy anyway? Empathy is the ability to experience and relate to the thoughts, emotions, or experience of others. So it's about truly feeling what the other person is feeling. You know I often talk about how we don't 'do' emotions. But empathy is about...
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Easy Ways to Say No
Lessons for Leaders
Do you find it difficult to say no to people? Perhaps it means you end up being busy, stressed, over-committed? Often when we struggle to say no to people it can leave us feeling used, put up-on, juggling too many things. Are you the one who ends up working late because you’ve said yes to others, yet you’re the one with more to do? This episode is for you where I talk about Say no and establish healthy boundaries How to handle the fear, stress, worry and guilt The surprising reason that saying no is good for you Key phrases that you can begin to use to get...
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De-stigmatizing Mental Health
Lessons for Leaders
This week I'm sharing tips and information about De-stigmatizing Mental Health. I share key points on: Why mental health is stigmatized How stigma brings shame and what that looks like How it will impact on your organisation Good news on the wider impact of investing in destigmatizing Key things that you can do and examples too When we prevent people talking openly and transparently we also prevent those who need it from having support. Stigma brings shame. Listen in for information about how people respond then feel ashamed and what the impact will be...
info_outlineMental health and wellbeing doesn’t have a holiday at Christmastime. More so this year - it’s important to take care of your wellbeing.
Top 10 Tips for Fantastic Festive Wellbeing
I’m sharing 10 quick and easy tips to help you stay well and enjoy the festivities.
Listen in for life experiences, personal stories as well as proven tips.
I want to help you go into Christmas break in a way you can enjoy it, but come out the other side feeling rested and ready for 2021.
If you’re a manager or HR in the workplace, it’s also important that you have conversations and signpost people to support services that are available for your staff. Encourage your people to do at least one of these tips for wellbeing, even if it’s not all of them.
Encouraging people to take proper time off is important that you lead the way and send positive messages that give people permission to look after themselves and take care of their mental health and wellbeing.
What Are My Top 10 Tips for Fantastic Festive Wellbeing?
Routine
Try sticking to a kind of routine even if you’re not at work. Now I don’t mean still getting up at 5am and working to midnight – or whatever it is that you do, but keep to some form of usual sleep and waking hours is helpful to keep your body clock on track. Routines are first thing to go out of the window during holiday times.
Having a routine means there’s less to think about in each day.
Hear more about how routines help with productivity, certainty and coping with change in the podcast.
Boundaries
Mental health professionals and self-help gurus put a lot of emphasis on boundaries because they’re the foundation of healthy relationships and a strong sense of self-worth.
Boundaries are my favourite subject and I explain how to say no easily, how boundaries create respect and why they are helpful at Christmastime.
Avoid Comparisons
Listen in for the great story about the comparisons in our street and how they backfired! It was funny. It also helps to explain why comparisons are not helpful and why you should give yourself a break and take the pressure off yourself.
Connections
I’ve talked previously in episode 34 about enhancing connections. This year more than every it’s so important. Make time to connect and be in touch with other people and listen in to why it's important for your wellbeing.
Time For YOU
This is your holiday too. Make sure there are things that you want to do, films you want to see, places you want to go (OK I know that’s limited).
I explain in more detail on the podcast how you can set aside time to get a day or an activity that you like doing.
Also make sure that you have time for you to rest and repair and get ready for whatever is coming next in 2021.
Keep Active
It’s so easy to slump on the sofa and eat too much and watch films but try and make sure you do something every day – it’ boosts your serotonin – the feel good chemicals and helps to release the stress chemicals that have built up over the year we’ve had.
Food and Drink
Try not to over indulge throughout the whole holiday. Get some good healthy food and lots of water to keep you hydrated and flush out the toxins of stress, alcohol and processed foods so that you look after your body and feel better in the long run.
Breathe!
I talk about this all the time on my workshops, training, coaching and on many other podcast episodes.
Taking a breath creates the space to calm down your brain, it calms your internal system from the guilt and pressure and whatever else is going on and allows you space to think clearly.
I know this all sounds simple – but you actually have to do it!
Sleep
Getting enough sleep is a no-brainer - but yet many of don't do it. Or the stress and anxiety keep us awake - so reducing those things, with the tools I've mentioned all sit hand in hand.
Listen in for more tips and reasons why getting enough sleep is powerful for your wellbeing, mental health and reducing stress.
Ask for Help
If you’re struggling with doing everything over Christmas, then please, please do ask for help. I know people won’t always do things the way you want them done, but they will get done.
Listen in for the thing that my husband does which is helpful ... but also makes me need to leave the room!
Asking for help is a sign of strength. Ask for help too if you need personal support for your mood, mental health or anything else.
I'm here for you and so are many other people and places. Don't struggle alone.
Christmas wellbeing really IS achievable and enjoyable! Stick to my top 10 fantastic festive wellbeing tips and you are sure to go into the New Year feeling good!
I wish you a wonderful Christmas!
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If you want to be increasing your performance so that you’re more resilient in these current times, so that you can focus easily, use tools and techniques to deal with all the current and unknown challenges then make sure that you either drop me an email to [email protected] . Or head over to my website and you can find the contact page and either send me a email from there or book an appointment straight into my diary – saving all that to-ing and fro-ing that you get when we try to get space in people’s diary.