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Rule #53 Men, Don’t Dye your Hair
Well I reckon I’ve got that one covered… This is wonderful wisdom from Kitty Flanagan in her fantastic book, ‘488 Rules for Life’ (The Thankless Task of Being Correct.) Kitty reasons that we kind of look OK with grey anyway, so just go with it. There are three BIG reasons...
Why nurses ask good questions – and how you can too
At 4am on Monday morning I woke in severe pain – feeling like someone had hooked high powered jumper leads to my inner left thigh – not pretty! By daylight there was more trouble – a bright, red, burning rash spreading across my lower calf. Neither of these improved much...
How to grab your audience and keep them engaged
If public speaking is part of your role and you want some tips on how to grab your audience, then read on! For some of us, public speaking is a regular part of our roles and we’ve learnt to deal with it. For many of us, it’s an occasional demand...
How to Maintain your Motivation
Harnessing Motivation - Four not-so-conventional Motivational Strategies In a previous life I delivered a course called Effective Personal Leadership. Module Six focused on motivation. During one particular program, star participant, Jenny was a no-show. She rang a few days later and half-giggling, said, “Andrew, I just couldn’t be bothered!” We...
How a Solutions Focus has Changed the Way I Work
Last year I attended the Solutions Focus Coaching Training Programme run by Janine Waldman from the UK. I signed up because the programme promised a pragmatic approach to helping individuals and teams to achieve high performance. I flew from Perth to Melbourne to be there and wasn't disappointed. Solutions Focus...
What being vulnerable as a presenter really looks like
Being vulnerable as a presenter isn't easy, but it sure is effective. And if you have a gripping story to tell that brings your world into your audience's world, you're going to have an impact. You can read about the lead-in to this presentation and how it feels to be...
Nail your next presentation
What I learnt from spending almost $8,000 on a speakers boot-camp (and what it feels like to be naked in front of room full of strangers!) Have you also felt that you’d like to take your presentations to the next level? To walk away 100% confident that your message has...
Six Tips for Engaging Senior Managers
Simple strategies for engaging senior managers You've probably been engaging senior managers from a young age - you just may not have realised it at the time! Remember as a kid when there was something you really wanted? Something out of the ordinary? Like an overnight stay at a friend’s...
How using their language helps you to engage your target audience
How to better engage your target audience, no matter what medium you’re using to connect with them. The 'back story' Stick with me here, and look for the clues about how to engage your target audience. Leading up to Christmas, my wife Georgie, and I recognised that we really needed...
Staying focused in facilitation – yeah, right!
The importance of knowing what's going on around you as a facilitator Not long ago, I ran a ‘Facilitation Master Class’ for staff of a key client in Victoria. One of the topics was ‘trends and changes in facilitation.’ It was an interesting area for me to reflect on, thinking...
What a Seagull Taught Me About Stakeholder Engagement
A brief insight on engagement principles Not long after I started my consultancy business I was invited by my local town council to attend a ‘community visioning’ workshop. It taught me a lot about engagement principles. I was interested to see how it was run from a facilitation perspective, along...
The real story behind why I’m running a half marathon on Sunday
This news may come as a shock! It is indeed true, I’ve signed up and am ready to run a half-marathon in Melbourne this Sunday. Why? Well it’s not a midlife crisis or alpha-male thing. Nor a throw-back to sporting glory days – these were few and far between (I...
Practical Tips to Help Get You Through Your Next BIG Challenge
What 70 minutes of pain taught me about working through a BIG challenge No doubt you have a challenge that you face every day. It could be in the ‘OK I’ve just gotta deal with this’ category through to ‘what the hell was I thinking’ extreme. You may know that...
Do people really trust you? Why?
A recent road-trip taught me that trust is at an all time low in Australia. I do a lot of my work in regional Australia. Lately I’ve been doing a heap of stakeholder interviews as part of an industry development plan. It takes a bit of a leap of faith...
A simple technique to prioritise ideas, goals or actions
Here's a simple and effective technique to help you prioritise ideas, goals or actions with your team Picture this - you've worked with your team to generate some amazing opportunities - to achieve results you need a way to prioritise ideas. Use the Impact vs Capacity grid as a visual...
Does Superior Product Beat Superior Marketing?
What's your focus re product vs marketing to get results? Superior product vs marketing - what do you think works best? We’re on the My Kitchen Rules (MKR) bandwagon now, watching home cooks battle it out night after night for the chance of fame and a big chunk of cash....
How to deal with defensive meeting participants
A simple strategy to manage defensive meeting participants Clients are constantly telling me that dealing with defensive meeting participants is a common challenge in their workplace, especially when it comes to internal or team meetings. What may be driving defensive meeting participants There are often polarised views around the table,...
Turning Points – a powerful connective and reflective process
How to use Turning Points for instructive insights I was first introduced to the Turning Points exercise by Bob Dick at an advanced facilitation workshop. In simple terms Turning Points can be used to improve trust within the team through reflection and safe disclosure. I’ve also used it as a...