The question is

We have a habit of only seeing the evidence that supports our view of the world.  When stuff happens we can focus on the bits that help us to confirm what we already believe, regardless of how much the evidence is stacked against us.  When this perspective collides with unhelpful beliefs or negative self-image, then we start to Discount The Positives, another common thinking error that many of us do from time to time.

In this episode, Graham and Paul explore how this trait that starts off sounding like humility can quickly undermine our own self-confidence and le...

As we continue to explore the common thinking errors, the little trip-ups in the way that we think, our episode this time explores Personalisation.  Personalisation happens when we blame ourselves for things that are really outside our control.  We did not plan this episode for our Christmas one, but what a lucky coincidence, as you may experience a little of this over the next few days, so it might be worth understanding what is going on.

Graham and Paul dig into what causes us to take the normal to and fro of life and sometimes find meaning an...

One of the common thinking errors we encounter revolves around 'should' and 'must' statements that we say to ourselves, creating high demands on how the world needs to be, when the world has not agreed to our demands. Often, we don't need to operate anywhere near that level to be successful.

If you carry around the invisible rule book of your own standards, ticking off each day where you fail to live up to impossible expectations, and the world conspires to frustrate you. This podcast in our series on thinking errors will be of interest.  Richard and G...

As we continue our series of podcasts on common thinking errors, in this podcast, Ricky and Richard make up stuff.  Well, to be honest, I just made that up because this is a great podcast and I was not part of it!  This is emotional reasoning, and if you listen to this podcast, they will introduce you to this common thinking error that we can all make from time to time.

Emotional Reasoning is where our mind mixes up who we feel about something (or someone) and the supporting facts about that situation or person.  If you hav...

As we continue our series on common Thinking Errors, this episode considers the way that sometimes we jump to conclusions with minimal evidence and no facts.

Ricky and Paul explore the different ways we see this playing out, taking examples from sport where commentators take stats from 20 years ago to tell us who is going to win, without anyone pointing out that there are very few sportspeople who were playing 20 years ago playing today, so it is not the same team!

If you are prone to making leaps in your logic, jumping to conclusions that...

If you have ever had one bad thing happen, and suddenly cannot remember everything good that happened before, then this podcast is for you.  In this episode, Graham asks Paul about he common thinking error, Mental Filtering.   

Our brains are designed to sort through all of the information presented to us quickly and then focus on the areas that present danger or risk.  It is doing its primary job of keeping us alive long enough to pass on our genes!  Yet, in a modern world, we are not really at risk, so occasionally this amazing trick backfires and m...

In our series on thinking errors, this podcast explores catastrophising, with Richard and Graham sharing their own personal experience of this cognitive trick our mind can play, as well as examining why it happens and how to deal with it.

If you have ever turned a paper cut into a medical emergency, or a problem at work starts to feel like the first step toward unemployability, then this podcast will help you understand how this simple mental defensive mechanism can easily shift from our best friend to an unhelpful foe.

Now, I don't know about you, but based just on the first 30 seconds of this podcast, this is going to be the best podcast you have ever heard...

As we continue our series on Thinking Errors, this episode explores overgeneralisation.  Richard talks Ricky through the risks associated with over-generalising, making broad-brush connections about events, people and situations based on the specifics of a single or a small number of instances.

What happens to our performance when we overgeneralise, making assumptions and decisions based on flawed information?  

Over the next few months, we will be running a new mini-series within 'The Question Is...' that explores the most common Thinking Errors.  Thinking Errors are cognitive distortions that alter our thinking, distorting the way we see the world and can impact performance and mood.

In this first episode, Ricky talks to Paul about 'All-or-Nothing' thinking.  This way of seeing situations as simple, Black or White, Right or Wrong, Good or Bad.  This tricks our thoughts into seeing situations as absolute, ignoring the complexity and nuance that typically exists.

From ignoring our own...

Wouldn't it be nice if change just happened, all at once, and then things went back to being stable for a while?  The reality is that change in the workplace is rarely a simple one-off event, more often change is delivered in waves, often iterated to allow the change to best reflect the environment.

It is easy to imagine the worst when change happens, assuming job losses, less rewards and more work, over expansion and growth, and when our teams start to imagine these things, it will quickly start to impact productivity, motivation and sometimes even well-being. Duration: 00:17:09

When we change how we work, however much planning and training we put in place up front, we still need to allow a period when things will get worse before they get better.  We may need time to adapt to new processes, systems, or unlearn old ways of doing things.

Who wants to get worse at their job?  Instead of embracing the discomfort of change, most of us cling to the old ways we understand, hoping to stay within our comfort zone.

In this podcast, Richard and Graham explore why this happens, and what leaders an...

In this episode of The Question, Ricky and Graham continue from episode 147, exploring the impact of constant change on teams.

The modern world of work is one of constant evolution, which, for some, can be a great opportunity.  Still, for many, it feels relentless, risking creating change fatigue in the people you rely on to make the change work.

Change is a mixture of practical and people outcomes, and leaders can easily focus on the practical deliverables, leaving the people to transition to the change on their own.  Graham and Ricky explore the practical things th...

Sometimes, it feels like the workplace has become a place of constant change, with technology, economics and societal changes driving the need for teams to adapt how they work to meet changing needs constantly.  Leaders who can help their teams embrace new ideas and working practices can drive the performance of their teams while at the same time protecting those they work with from the stress we feel when change is imposed on us.

In this episode of The Question Is, Ricky and Graham explore the leader's role in preparing their team in advance, creating a c...

In this podcast, Richard and Ricky explore some practical things you can do to build the culture in your organisation.

Org Culture is a big topic, and often you can get lost in the plethora of models and ideas.  Culture feels big and something the most senior people have to take action on.  Yet there are some simple, practical steps that any of us can take to improve the culture, even if it is just for our team.

From establishing the group's purpose, discovering the values, and aligning the business practices around measurement, reward and pr...

What can I do to build rapport quickly? Rapport is a key skill when building relationships, when influencing others, and when collaborating, in fact, any time you want or need to engage with someone. 

Ricky asks our resident psychologist, Paul, about practical ways to instantly build rapport. Together, they explore crucial elements to make rapport-building easy and impactful and get your connection off on the right foot.  

If you want to avoid friction and get stuff done more easily, you almost always need to form a connection with your team, coworkers, suppliers and customers. Tune in...

We like to think that all the teams in our organisation are aligned, collaborating effectively, and working in harmony. In an ideal world, all of our teams' passion and energy would be combined against the external world, beating competitors and solving problems that get in the way.

In reality, under pressure, we often turn on the groups closest to us.  Not because they are the problem but because they are visible and identifiable.  It is hard to blame people we can't identify, so we find an 'enemy' we can name, which can be as simple as th...

When different opinions appear in the decision, the easy answer is to push the decision up. Let the boss decide.

There are two issues with this strategy.  Firstly, while the boss will probably engage with the process, they will also hate it.  They have enough to do without having to make decisions for warring teams. Plus, it never reflects well on those asking. 

The bigger issue is when the team is in a matrix, and there is no obvious boss to pass the buck to.  Then, the team has to find a way or risk the...

Here is another podcast that examines the questions that regularly arise in our work. This time, Richard and Ricky consider why managers might avoid some of the more big (difficult) conversations that are needed between manager and team members.

Often, senior managers assume that these conversations are happening, only to find out as issues escalate that a culture of over-politeness or hoping things will sort themselves out if we ignore them for long enough has sowed ambiguity and misunderstanding.

Why do these conversations feel so difficult for managers, and what can we do to ensure...

In this podcast, Paul and Richard tackle one of the questions we have been asked a lot since the pandemic ended - How do you build trust between team members and teams that don't spend that much time in the office.

Building trust between individuals and groups is far more complex than many of us realise because we do it so easily when we are together.  We build trusting relationships through the micro-moments we spend together: before meetings, over lunch, getting coffee and in quick informal interactions.  We also build trust through working together.  It is the com...

The coaching question in this podcast might not be as common as others we have covered, but it is one we can personally relate to. Regardless of your role or expertise, there are times when we give it our all, putting everything we have to get something over the line, then we reset to the start and have to go again.

Sales targets reset each year, project manager complete their delivery only to get a new project, software engineers get the release out the door, and then start working on a new feature. 

Paul promised y...

This episode continues our series of common topics from coaching conversations.  In this episode, Paul and Graham consider the idea of 'people pleasing' - being helpful to the point of thier own detriment.  

From understanding the difference between helpfulness and people pleasing, through to how to say no to the boss, Graham and Paul talk about what might be driving some of these behaviours and shat are the simple strategies that you can adopt to ensure you find the balance between helping and supporting the people around you, and ensuring that you protect your own time and wel...

As we continue our mini-series of common topics from coaching conversations, in this podcast, Ricky and Paul explore why sometimes people feel drained at work, leaving them with an overall feeling of being tired.

Clearly, at times, we can all burn the candle at both ends, but in coaching situations, this is often a sign of something deeper going on.  From doing work that is draining to the unintended consequences of the habits we adopt when our workload goes up, Ricky and Paul explore some potential causes and strategies to help maintain us through these peak times. Duration: 00:28:57

As part of our series of questions often raised in coaching conversations, in this episode of The Question Is, Paul and Graham explore the often asked, without ever being actually said, question: How do I know if I should change roles?

Being ready to move on from your current role can be challenging. From not feeling like you have finished what you needed to do in the role to not feeling ready for the next role, changing jobs can be difficult and anxiety-inducing. There is rarely a good time to change roles, with opportunities presenting in manual...

Every leadership role you undertake is slightly different.  Different people, different problems, different cultures, maybe just a different time and place.  Our ability to lead can be as much about the context or situation we find ourselves in as it is the skills we bring to the party!

As part of our series of questions commonly raised in our coaching practice, Ricky and Paul explore the situation that many people find themselves in: doing the things that have always worked for them and finding that, for some reason, this time,, they do not get the outcomes they en...

Feedback has been described as the breakfast of champions, but giving feedback can be one of the toughest things we have to do, with many people avoiding giving feedback if they possibly can.

In this, another podcast in our series of questions from coaching conversations, Ricky and Graham focus on why some people find it so difficult to give good feedback and how developing your technique around feedback is a vital leadership skill.

From why we find feedback so difficult, through to models and structures to make you better at feedback - if you want...

Paul and Graham tackle saying no in this latest episode of the podcast where we look at the questions that are frequently raised in coaching sessions.  Saying no, especially to the boss, is one of the things most of us find hard to do.

From the desire to say yes to the mindset that makes it okay to say no when that is the right thing to do, this episode explores all the aspects of saying no and offers some simple strategies to help you navigate these difficult conversations without ever having to actually say no.

There is an old saying in business psychology: People rarely leave a company; they normally leave a manager!  Not all bosses are good bosses, yet at the same time, not all bosses people think are bad are really bad bosses.

Sometimes what appears as a difficult boss, is actually a different style that evokes a reaction from some of the people working for them.  Sometimes though, it is the managers behaviour that makes it difficult for those working for them.

In this podcast, Ricky and Paul explore the different categories, from bosses who are just di...

Continuing with our series of podcasts exploring questions that come up during coaching sessions, this podcast builds on episode 131, this time looking at how you find your purpose in life (not just work).

In this episode, Ricky and Graham, chat about life's purpose, talking through the different areas of life, and the different things that motivate us in life.  They have a really open and honest conversation on how they have had to consider the different aspects of their own life, using the five balls or the wheel of life to ensure they consider all of the a...

Most of us spend over a third of our time at work - until we get to retire!  Next to sleep is the part of our life that we spend the most time doing, yet often, we have no idea why we are there or what we are trying to achieve.  Yeah, we are there for the money, and that means hitting some goals, but is that enough?

What makes work meaningful? What is our 'ripple on the universe'?  Without a clear understanding of why we are here, we risk mistaking what we do as our purpose and...

Continuing our journey into the questions that often come up in coaching sessions, in this podcast Richard and Paul explore how success in demanding jobs and work-life balance often can seem incompatible.
Creating balance is a popular topic, with no end of articles and influencers talking about the tricks to create balance, or the sacrifices required to be successful.  However, the topic is more nuanced that commonly presented, as balance is a very personal thing, and what might look like as balance for one person, would feel like purgatory for another.  

It is possible to create bal...

Uncertainty has become a very present factor of modern working life, yet almost all of us crave certainty and spend a lot of our time and effort working very hard to create as much of it as we can.  Only to find that uncertainty often wins out!

In this podcast, part of a mini-series looking at the questions and topics that often come up in coaching sessions, Richard and Paul dive into the world of uncertainty.  They explore some of the ways that we can ensure that we don't get stuck waiting for certainty, or derailed when th...

Another podcast in our mini series exploring some of the questions that come up in coaching sessions, in this episode of the podcast, Richard and Paul discuss the questions that is asked without ever being asked, what are my values?

Values are at the heart of behaviours, driving both purpose and actions. Yet, we are often oblivious to them and their impact on our decisions and perceptions of the world.  Paul and Richard explore their influence on our lives, how you can find out what your values are, and the ways they change at different stages of o...

Sometimes (at work) we get a little lost.  Maybe our actions are not working, our dreams suddenly appear unattainable, or we become disconnected from the purpose.  It may happen slowly over time or can be a sudden upheaval when things around us change.

It can be very disconcerting to feel lost, yet many of us experience it at some point. As coaches, we are frequently asked the question, 'What's the point?'. 

In this podcast Paul and Ricky explore how people may find themselves lost, and what they can do to reconnect with their purpose, or...

Continuing our series of podcasts that explore the most common questions asked in coaching sessions, Rob and Paul explore the very common topic of time in this podcast.  A range of time questions come up, all of which centre around the genuine issue of having more things to do than the time available.

Time management skills are essential to modern working but are only part of the story.  Most of us have jobs where the demands outstrip the time available, and in this episode, Paul and Rob explore the different mindset (and skills) required to ensure that th...

Let's face it, none of us really love getting feedback.  We know it is important, and helps us grow,  It is also hard to hear sometimes and often badly delivered.  Sometimes, it feels like it is easier to not be told, even though we know that is not really the right answer!

This podcast is part of a series based on the questions that come up the most in coaching sessions. In this episode, Rob and Ricky explore how feedback can be helpful once you get past the emotive reaction it often creates. They also explore the dif...

We are back with new podcasts for 2024, and we are starting the year with some of the questions that we get asked as coaches.   

In this episode, Rob and Paul explore the question most new leaders ask themselves: What makes me worthy of being a leader? There are several reasons why people pose this question, from self-doubt, to seeing the capability of others (while not seeing our own strengths) or simply not seeing leadership for what it is.

If this is a question you have asked yourself, then this podcast will help you think through al...

There are moments, often, when we hit milestones that symbolise the end of something (like the end of a year), that we stop and take a moment to look back.  These moments are opportunities to reflect, to learn and to prepare to start again.

Yet, in work, these moments are missed as we jump from project to project, urgent task to urgent task.  Urgency getting in the way of growth, learning and, most importantly, using this wisdom to focus on the things that will have the biggest impact on our goals.

In this podcast, Ricky ta...

It is that time of year, when we start to reflect on the year and promise ourselves that next year will be different.  Next year, we will be fitter, healthier, more successful and just so much better.  Sadly, for most of us, New Year's Resolutions have the nasty habit of fading away as life pushes us back to old habits and practices.

So, what if this is the year? What if there is something that you want to change?  That is what Ricky wanted, so in this podcast, he finds out from our resident psychologist, Paul, what is...

In this podcast, Rob and Ricky don their capes and dive into the world of stellar communication.  (what they get up to in their own time is up to them!) What does it take to be a true communication superhero in an era riddled with distractions, impatience, and information overload? 

Being an effective communicator isn't just about conveying messages; it's about understanding, connecting, and making an impact. Yet, many of us falter, whether it's due to a lack of skills, a disregard for respect and courtesy, or simply a scattered focus and lack of purpose in our in...

Rob and Ricky as they dive headfirst into the intricate web of common communication pitfalls that leave many of us scratching our heads, wondering, "Where did that go wrong?" 

Have you ever sat through a meeting and thought it was a complete waste of time? We explore the impact of poorly conducted meetings - how they not only drain our time but also our energy and productivity. We've all been there, and it's time to address the elephant in the room. 

But that's just the tip of the iceberg. Assumptions. They say when you assume, yo...

With an alarming statistic revealing that a staggering 70% of errors in the workplace can be traced back to miscommunication, it's no wonder that businesses are feeling the pinch. Dive deeper, and you'll find that poor communication ranks as the number one concern for a majority of businesses, overshadowing even financial concerns or market competition. 

But what really happens when communication goes awry? Trust erodes. The very foundation upon which business relationships are built begins to wobble. Employees start second-guessing, leading to serious doubts about the motives, integrity, and capabilities of their employers. The domino effect of this b...

Did you know that, according to a Forbes (March 2023), only about a third of companies believe they communicate effectively?

In this episode, Rob and Ricky dive into the complex realm of communication, a skill so integral yet so frequently misinterpreted.

They explore why most companies fail to communicate effectively and share some of the stumbling blocks hindering effective communication.  Consider this, when one individual errs, does everyone else receive a blanket message? We know this is not the best approach, so why does this keep happening?

Ricky and Rob also delve in...

We have two primal fears: shame and death!  Evolutionary strong feelings that were designed to keep us alive, but not really designed for the modern workplace, yet these fears play out strongly in our day-to-day lives.

In this episode of our mini-series on getting out of your own way, Richard and Ricky discuss how fear of failure might drive our behaviour, and not always in ways that make us more productive or easy to get on with!

We want people to be authentic in the workplace, to show up as they are, and to be their best selves.  Not only do we want to be authentic because it helps us build trust and better relationships, but it is easier - it takes less work just to be you.

At the same time, we all want to fit it, show off our best bits and look good, so from time to time, we put effort into ensuring that others see us in the way that we want them to.

In this podcast, Rob a...

Rob and Paul continue this mini-series within The Question Is podcast about some of the different ways that people 'get in their own way'.  This time we consider perfectionism. 

Could perfectionism be an advantage, or are we confusing high standards, with nothing ever being quite good enough?

Like most traits that get in our way, these habits were once useful, which is why they have become a habit.  Then, out of the blue, the very thing that was helping becomes the thing getting in the way. 

Paul and Rob explore the fine line betw...

The feeling that you are an imposter, doing something you feel unqualified for or that you have no right to do.  Going to work every day with the feeling that this is the day when everyone will realise that you are there by mistake, and it is time for you to go. 

Surprisingly, it is a very common feeling, one that most of us will experience at some point in our working life.  In this episode of the podcast, we continue to explore the different things that we do, getting in our own way.  Richard and Paul talk...

Can you have a goal that is too big?  Or too small?

In this episode of the podcast, Ricky and Rob explore how we can get in our own way when we pick goals that are either too easy or too hard.   

They discuss how our belief in our ability to achieve the goal dramatically impacts how we approach it, so the best goals always fall within a 'goldilocks' zone of not too hard and not too easy; falling in the zone of just-right like the best porridge!  Even when we have the right level of b...

Confidence is an integral part of our own personal success.  With it we make bolder decisions, try and little harder and frame difficulties as obstacles, without it we become more cautious and only see barriers.  Not having confidence, in ourselves, the people around us or the situations we find ourselves in is one of the most common ways we get in our own way.

In this podcast, Rob and Paul explore what confidence is, and how we get it.  Do we need confidence to do the things we do, or do we get confidence from doing them?  This...

Ever wondered why you can find so many things to do when you have something important to get done or why social media seems more interesting than the piece of work in front of you?   

Most of us procrastinate from time to time, some of us more than others.  In this podcast, Paul and Ricky explore why we do and how it is often misunderstood (especially by those that don't do it as much). Importantly, they explore the different strategies for tackling procrastination when it gets in the way.  

If you know someone who mi...

When asked, 'what gets in your way?', most of us have the same answer.  Me!

However hard we try, we cannot get out of our own way.  We spend our life erecting barriers for us to them climb over, acting like a critic and sometimes even being a bully to ourselves.

This is the first of several podcasts exploring the different ways we get in our own way and looking at some simple things that any of us can do to reduce self-inflicted barriers.  Getting in your own way is perfectly normal, but you don...

The idea that we think fast and slow (Daniel Kahneman) or like a chimp and a human (Steve Peters) has moved from the world of psychology and now is part of everyday understandings of human behaviour.  So, what is the impact of these two different ways of thinking have on leadership in organisations, and which one should leaders be using?

Ricky and Rich discuss their observation of working with leaders and how their thinking drives the results and behaviours in themselves and their followers.  Where does fast thinking work, and where might slow thinking have the advantage?

Why is it that some people thrive when change happens, and others seem to do so badly?  Change at work is almost the only constant left, yet many of us are really bad at handling it; missing the opportunities that change often presents.  

In this podcast, Richard and Ricky explore what we can learn from the people who have handled change well.  What can all learn from their behaviours to ensure that the next time we face change at work, we can make the most of the situation? 

Dealing with unexpected change, especially when working with or in large organisations, has become a core skill every employee must master. Yet, many people find themselves unprepared for change when it happens and can find themselves struggling to cope.

In this podcast, Paul and Rich explore why some people are good at dealing with change and others struggle. What makes some people resilient and how can the rest of us use the techniques for ourselves?

Change at work often takes us by surprise, appearing out of nowhere.  This makes sense when you think about it.  Organising and getting ready to announce change, big or small, takes a lot of work, with many moving factors.  When we are on the receiving end of change, we crave clarity - we probably don't want to be involved in the early changes when there are more questions than answers.

Organisational change can, therefore, knock us for six. Blindsiding our carefully thought-through plans.  Some people take this in their stride, while others find it really hard to deal...

Talent conversations come in many shapes and sizes.  Talent is more than just how good you are today; it also encompasses how well you fit into the plans for tomorrow.  Your plans, the organisation's plans, and their plans....   

What could possibly go wrong?

Ricky and Paul tackle the conversations that leaders need to have to help the people around them understand where they are right now, what is expected of them and where they need to develop.   Talent conversations may not be easy, but with a bit of structure and thought, they can be positive and co...

Working out who the talented people are sounds easy, but it turns out to be quite complex for many leaders.  Loyalty and liking get in the way of tough decisions, and potentially get confused with performance.  We also ignore issues when they are small, making them really difficult to deal with once they become a problem.

In this podcast, Paul and Ricky explore a model used by a lot of organisations to help them think about talent, and the different ways that people need to be managed to get the best out of them. The model, affectionately kn...

Developing the skills and growing the people around us is, all too often, perceived as something that HR or L&D own.  The perception is that this has very little to do with day-to-day activities, maybe even getting in the way of doing the work.  Yet, without building the skills to do what is needed now and what will be needed next, it is impossible to achieve our goals.

In this episode, Ricky and Paul propose that talent management is a leadership issue.  From setting the expectation of what skills are going to be needed to encouraging peo...

Who is responsible for developing you so that your career progresses?   

It used to be something that employers took responsible for; however, that may not be the case anymore. 

In this podcast, Paul and Ricky explore the way that career development changes over your career and how modern careers may have to have quite different expectations around learning and development.

So, ask yourself, who owns developing your career?  Is it you, or is it your boss?

So what are the important things that leaders need to focus on to ensure that they are leading for success?  Does that change in a year like 2023, when, yet again, everything is up in the air?

In this podcast Paul and Ricky consider what would be the five most important areas that a leader should focus on when leading in such uncertain in times.  They consider how this might be different from other years (hint, it isn't, it is just that this level of uncertainty is much less forgiving than normal), and offer some practical tips on wh...

In this special edition, one-hundredth episode of the podcast we explore the four key topics, Productivity, Change, Culture and Leadership to see if we can get each of them down to one piece of wisdom, well one piece each from Ricky, Rob, Rich and Paul.   

Without creating any spoilers, you may have guessed that we did not get it down to one, or one per topic!    However, we did come up with some real nuggets for each of the areas, so listen in for a quick grounding in how to get things done in your orga...

Every day in every workplace there are important conversations that just don't happen.  Conversations around performance, disagreements around strategy, information that may stop a mistake about to happen.  Important and beneficial conversations that don't happen.

These are difficult conversations.  An exchange that may go wrong, get emotional or have future consequences.  In that moment, the cost of having the conversation seems so much bigger than the cost of not having the conversation in our heads.  We stay quiet, it is the safest approach.  Yet, in the long term, we end up dealing with the consequences of the things...

In the last of our short series of podcasts on questions, Rob and Ricky tackle the role of questions in critical thinking.  From exploring the advantages or disadvantages of different options to making decisions, asking the right questions allows us to cut through and get the best answers. 

Great outcomes start with great questions.

Another short podcast in our mini-series on questions, this time Rob and Ricky look at the role of questions in making us think creatively.  

Questions have the magical property of making you think, even when you don't want to, so with small shifts in the structure of the question, you can use questions to make anyone think more creatively.  

Continuing our short series on the power of questions, in this podcast, Rob and Ricky explore the role of questions in creating clarity.

Questions are one of the easiest ways of engaging our minds.  In fact, they are sneaky, as it is almost impossible not to think about a question when asked, even if you don't want to answer it.   Questions can help us sort through the noise to discover exactly what we want, when we want it, and how we will know when we get there.

As part of a mini-series on the power of questions, Ricky and Rob look at the role of questions, why they are an important tool for leaders and managers and discuss why they work.

From the way we ask questions, to using questions to helping others think, this podcasts asks questions about questions.

So, you have spent hours working out how best to run your meeting or workshop, you have a plan, you have the timing perfect...  then the workshop starts, and you watch as your plan gets up and leaves the building!

In this podcast, Paul gets experienced facilitators Richard and Rob to share some of their secrets so that you look like everything is running to plan; you end up exactly where you said you would end up, even if you don't quite know how you got there.

Often to get to the heart of a problem or strategy, you need to create an honest and open exchange of views, yet you don't want it to tip over into an argument or the participants becoming overly emotional.

In this podcast, Paul explores this with experienced facilitators Richard and Rob to find out how they find the balance, getting everything on the table, even surfacing controversial opinions, while ensuring the group works together and continues to support each other.

Our series on facilitation continues with one of the most difficult things that anyone running a meeting or facilitating a session has to deal with, people!

There are a number of reasons why someone might not be playing along with the process or playing nice with the group, and as the facilitator, you are the person who is best placed to intervene.  However, this is more than just laying down the law, and a little understanding of what might be causing the issue will help to identify strategies that may make life better for you and for t...

In the business world, getting people to stop, think and contribute can be a challenge.  Yet, somehow, great facilitators manage to get everyone chatting, contributing and feeling heard.   

In this podcast, Richard and Rob explain to Paul all of the tricks that they have picked up in the years that they have been facilitating.  By using some of these tricks, you can get even the quietest person to contribute to your next workshop.

Continuing our series on facilitation, Paul asks Rob and Richard how they create the trust and 'safety' required to get honesty and openness from workshop participants.

Creating a safe space is one of the primary responsibilities of a facilitator.

If you get the environment and dynamic wrong, it may cause people to close down, limiting the ideas, challenge and acceptance of the group.  Getting it wrong makes the facilitator's role harder.

A series of simple interventions, from the room layout to the first few minutes, can make all the difference, even though the g...

The Thinking Focus team have facilitated workshops all over the world.  We facilitate thinking for companies large and small, as well as charities, and government bodies; if you have something that you need the team to think about, then the team can help.

In this short series, Paul talks to Richard and Rob to understand how master facilitators work, giving you some inside tips on how to be a better facilitator, so you can get better outcomes in the meeting you are running.

This first podcast explores the thinking of the facilitator when they are p...

We spend most of the time with our brains on 'autopilot'.  We are thinking at a subconscious level, causing us to act without being truly aware of what we are doing.   This handy little trick helps us get through the day, making the most of the energy available and freeing up our conscious mind to work on the more important stuff, like 'what's for dinner?'.

Rob and Ricky explore in this podcast how you can turn off this automatic process, so you can take conscious control of the things that you really need to think about, not jus...

Every time we learn something new we have to connect that to our world, to understand how that new piece of information or skill will work for us.  Knowing is not enough, we have to integrate the new into our existing understanding of the world.  That takes reflection.

In this podcast, Ricky and Rob explore why reflection is so important and offer up different strategies that will help you reflect, and therefore embed, your learning.

How many goals should you have?   Should you have goals for everything, or just focus on one thing?  

Ricky and Rob have one goal in this podcast, to talk about how many goals should have if you want to make sure you achieve all of the goals that you set yourself.

How many goals should you have?   Should you have goals for everything, or just focus on one thing?  

Ricky and Rob have one goal in this podcast, to talk about how many goals should have if you want to make sure you achieve all of the goals that you set yourself.

Ricky and Rob get ARCI in this podcast, looking at how (and why) people often confuse accountability and responsibility.  

The RACI model is a great tool to help understand different roles and responsibilities, but is Responsible (the R in RACI) really the place to start, or should Accountable go first? 

Someone, probably a past manager, will have talked to you about time management at some point in your working life.  You won't be alone if these conversations have left you feeling that if you could just organise your time a little bit better, you would suddenly become so much more successful.

In this podcast, Rob and Paul explore this idea and pull apart the myths behind time management, suggesting that the alternative might be just to be better at managing your attention and choices.

In this episode of the podcast, we explore motivation. 

Ricky and Paul consider why the typical motivational strategy of rewards and consequences (Carrot and Stick) might not be getting the best out of your team.  They consider why this approach is so common when it has such a limited impact, and discuss alternative strategies that will create more engaged and motivated team members.

Have you ever wondered why sometimes you try and do things and it works, and sometimes you try and things just don't come together for you?

In this podcast Ricky and Rob talk about three steps in our thinking that leads to getting stuff done. If you can create Clarity about your outcome, be more Creative in your ideas while using Critcial thinking to ensure you focus your energy on the right areas, then you increase your chances of getting stuff done.

At the heart of this is our thinking model Fooodo; you can find out more...

People underperform in sales (and other roles) for several reasons, in this podcast we will explore how mindset can be one of the biggest reasons why people underperform. 

Sales can be easier than other roles to spot when people underperform given the metrics available but identifying the factors behind underperformance is not so easy.   

What do we mean by mindset?  Our experience of psychology points to limiting beliefs and assumptions that cause people to get in their own way.  Mark Davies and Ricky Muddimer explore the topic in more detail asking how you can unlock the mi...

People underperform in sales (and other roles) for several reasons, in this podcast we explore the environment we create.   

Sales can be easier than other roles to spot when people underperform given the metrics available but identifying the factors behind underperformance is not so easy.   

What do we mean by environment?  It may sound obvious; in our experience, it's not, which is why Mark Davies and Ricky Muddimer explore the topic in more detail and what we mean by creating an environment for your people to perform. 

People underperform in sales (and other roles) for several reasons, in this podcast we will explore the skills aspect of the role.   

Sales can be easier than other roles to spot when people underperform given the metrics available but identifying the factors behind underperformance is not so easy.   

What do we mean by skills?  It may sound obvious; in our experience, it's not, which is why Mark Davies and Ricky Muddimer explore the topic in more detail and what we mean by skills and why looking at skills more broadly is so important.

People underperform in sales (and other roles) for several reasons, in this podcast, we will explore the knowledge aspect of a role. 

Sales can be easier than other roles to spot when people underperform given the metrics available but identifying the factors behind underperformance is not so easy.   

What do we mean by knowledge? 
Mark and Ricky explore what we mean by knowledge, discussing why knowledge is more than just job knowledge and exploring why it's important.  What is the knowledge requirement by your team, if you expect them to perform?

This is the last of our podcasts around our leadership model.  This time we explore the leader's role in process.

Leadership creates stability and change, and this dichotomy shines through when it comes to process.  How do leaders deal with the dual roles of creating efficient and consistent approaches, while at the same time continually improving to make them better, or occasionally transforming them to create competitive advantage?

Doing both of these is something many leaders find difficult; Rob and Paul consider why this is and what you can do about it.

T...

Continuing our series on the day to day leadership, and what is it that leaders do.  This time we consider the balance between being the leader and being a subject matter expert.  

Often people are asked to become leaders because of their strong technical skills; then they are expected to step back from the day-to-day and let others do the work.  If they can balance the demands of expert and leader then they empower their team, providing expert direction, growing team skills and providing governance.  If they get the balance wrong, they risk becoming the limit of the t...

Leaders want their followers to take accountability for their deliverables.  Most leaders think about what they can do to get more accountability, yet rarely consider what they might be doing that is destroying the very accountability that they are looking for.

Paul, Ricky and Rob explore what accountability means, and how leaders can create a culture where people own things, or how they might be accidentally driving a culture where people avoid being accountable because it is seen as too risky.

This podcast is part of a series about the role of leaders, ex...

Another podcast exploring the role of a leader.

This time we dive into engagement.  How do leaders create engage followers?

To us, engagement is more than just making sure people like working here.  It is the way that leaders connect people to purpose, the team and the plan.  This is an ongoing role, constantly needing updating and resetting as the team gets buffeted by day-to-day challenges.

This podcast is part of a series about the role of leaders, exploring the nuts and bolts of what leaders need to do. It is base...

This is another podcast in our series about the actual things that leaders do. 

This time Richard, Rob and Ricky talk feelings!  In particular, they discuss the leader's role in managing feelings; dealing with conflict, smoothing over loss when difficult decisions need to be made and most importantly creating a psychologically safe environment where people can flourish.

Leaders who ignore the people elements of the role risk damaging their own productivity and put their underlying purpose at risk.

This podcast is part of a series about the role of leaders, exploring the...

The last 18 months has radically changed the way that we work.  The old culture no longer applies, but the temporary culture we have been working with cannot move us forward.

Now is a time for cultural re-set for many organisations, but how can leaders shape this cultural change, to encompass the best bits from lockdown working; driving automony, collaboration and accountability.

Ricky, Rich and Paul consider how leaders can become role models and create cultural standards by lifting the culture and empowering, and not dumbing it down for everyone when it gets challenging.

This time on the podcast, we ask a very relevant question for the last quarter of 2021, as we work through this strange lull in the pandemic, trying to act like it is over yet without being really sure that it is.

This leads to a feeling that we should be getting back to normal, yet for many going back to what they were doing still feels a way off.  As leaders, how do we engage people who have lost their sense of purpose, or are having to do something slightly different as their organisation adjusts and repositions? Duration: 00:23:07

Once upon a time running a business was all about having the right resources or equipment, yet for most 21st-century organisations it is the people that make all the difference.  

In this podcast Ricky, Rob and Rich explore the leader's responsibility to ensuring that they have the right people to deliver their vision.  From attracting the right people in the first place to developing the skills and experience required to deliver tomorrow, leaders have to invest in their talent, because talent is the only thing we have to make our businesses unique.

This podc...

Often leaders have more influence over what does not get done than what does.  From creating the boundaries that keep the team focused on the core objectives, to deciding where best to focus resources, the leader needs to help the team focus on the areas that will have the biggest impact on the goal and higher purpose.  

In this podcast, Paul, Rob and Ricky explore how leaders manage the Scope, ensuring that the resources are directed towards the purpose, even if this means making difficult choices to leave some things undone.

This podcast is p...

Part of a leader's role is to share the purpose or vision with others - to turn them into followers who can help achieve the vision.  This is much easier to do when your leadership goal is to try and change the world, but what if you just want to be the best at whatever it is you do - why, and how, do these leaders build their tribe?

Rob, Ricky and Paul explore the idea of building a tribe; a group of followers who range from active participants to supporters engaged in their own projects, supporting y...

We are purpose-driven creatures.  We need to understand why we do what we do, meaning creates the motivation to do whatever it is we need to do.  Yet, often, leaders leave the purpose to chance, allowing team members to work it out for themselves.  

In this podcast Rob, Rich and Paul explore why leaders need a higher purpose, something that explains why we are doing what we are doing, to drive the team forward, to allow them to priorities resources and to know when they can say no.

This podcast is part of a series abou...

With many organisations considering hybrid working, what does that change about the ways that we manage people? 

Ricky and Paul walk through some of the key areas that managers need to consider if they are leading a  team that combines working styles - office, home and various hybrid options.

In some ways, managing a team is managing a team, and where the team works should not make much difference.  Yet, in other ways, mixing home workers and office workers can create some unique challenges that will require teams, and managers, to change their approach to mai...

As the pandemic lockdown hopefully draws to a close, many of us are starting to consider how will we work going forward. Will we return to the office as if nothing happened, or will many people carry on working from home?

Many organisations are considering hybrid working, splitting the working week between home and office, but is this a simple as it sounds? 

In this podcast, Paul and Ricky explore some of the challenges and advantages, from power to personality, collaboration to management style; we think about what needs to happen to make this approach w...

Leadership roles require different cognitive skills than many of the roles we do earlier on in our careers, but often we are expected to work this out for ourselves.

In this podcast, Richard and Ricky explore what this means. What is different about the way in which senior people need to think, and what does that mean for them and the way that they work?

This podcast is the last of four podcasts considering what is required of anyone who wants to take a senior role or highly demanding job in an organisation.

Leadership roles, big all-encompassing roles can be great fun, but doing them can have a big impact on your physical and mental health.

While it might look like the people who end up in these top jobs just have natural resilience. However, for many, resilience is actually part of their leadership discipline. 

In this podcast, Richard and Paul reflect on the habits and behaviours that they have seen in leaders who continually build their resilience to ensure they have the physical and mental health to deal with the demands of the role.

...

While sometimes it is hard to admit, if you have a big job, such as a senior leadership role, it does impact almost every part of your life.  To operate successfully in these demanding roles, you need to be able to find a balance between work and private lives that works for you and for the others in your life.  Managing this balance, and some of the conflict that naturally arises out of it is something that is often only tackled when problems arise.

Richard and Ricky explore how leaders can develop a clear understanding of their pr...

Senior people need high levels of awareness to be able to do their jobs effectively, but what exactly does it mean to be more aware.  In this podcast, Richard and Paul discuss how awareness of self, others, their organisation and the market place is different as people rise in organisations, and for those wishing to do so how they might start developing that awareness.

This podcast is the first of four podcasts considering what is required of anyone who wants to take a senior role or highly demanding job in an organisation.

You can find o...