It’s a long time ago but here’s what happened. My Dad, then in his eighties, is staring at my two boys. He’s barked a question at them and they are looking back helplessly. They stutter out a few words.
‘Speak up! Don’t mumble!’
I intervene with some reply which kind-of-answers his question.
Later that day … Read the rest >>
We coaches are eager to be seen as a profession, even though we fail so many of the criteria, such as barriers to entry, a long apprenticeship and statutory controls. Jargon can be one unwelcome feature of professionalism and it’s creeping up on us in coaching.
Therapy is a parallel here where its vocabulary has … Read the rest >>
Over the least few weeks we have seen two examples. Influential people wreck their reputations through inappropriate speaking, despite having easy access to PR advisers, speech writers, agents and lawyers: Gregg Wallace, TV host; Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury. Then, back in the past, Prince Andrew, Paula Vennells, Rebekah Vardy, Kevin Spacey – and if … Read the rest >>
I don’t know Gregg Wallace, the Masterchef presenter currently in trouble because of his alleged inappropriate comments and behaviour. But I worked in TV myself for many years and as a coach I have heard countless women complain about this same objectionable behaviour in their male colleagues.
There have been a few attempts by unnamed … Read the rest >>
It’s the end of my second session with this CEO as his coach. He runs a FTSE listed company. We have looked at the general health of his organization, his team and, just glancingly, at his personal life. Innocently I ask, ‘And what about you? What’s your own next move?’
Silence. He looks at the … Read the rest >>
This coach has paid good money for her training. Now it is six months on from that triumphant moment when she learnt that she had got her qualification. She knew it would take time to build a thriving practice but it’s still not happening. Disappointment dominates her thinking. She has just asked me to be … Read the rest >>
Watching the BBC Panorama documentary, The Post Office Scandal, I can never remember being moved to such high levels of anger and tears. I understand this wish to punish: someone must be held accountable! The hounds of vengeance are particularly out for Paula Vennells, the former chief executive of the Post Office. She took £4.5m … Read the rest >>
In this instance, I am the client. I am desperate for help to manage chronic pain. Pain is the special subject of my coach. I have explained to her that I am sceptical about how far mind-based approaches will work and that I am already familiar with many of the techniques.
Unfortunately, this coaching went … Read the rest >>
In her engaging memoir, Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown, Anne Glenconner devotes many pages to the behaviour of her husband, Colin Tennant, later Baron Glenconner. His family’s vast wealth had been created in the 19th century from developing and selling bleach. She describes his frequent full-scale tantrums when … Read the rest >>
A famous middle aged man is revealed as a sex pest, a cheat, a bully, or someone who has lied about his sexuality. He is influential, admired, affluent, seemingly he has everything. But… underneath all this success there may be something less pleasant going on. He is taking risks which could expose him. Any passing … Read the rest >>
Congratulations, you’ve finished your training course, your portfolio has been approved, you’re ready to go! But are you?
I’ve seen many hopefuls falter at this stage, despite the financial and psychological investment they have made in their future. Here are 10 proven ideas about how to achieve success:
1) Accept that you are still at … Read the rest >>
Over my decades as a coach I have worked with many clients accused of bullying. It’s never pretty. The accused person may have been subjected to a formal investigation and may have lost their job: most likely they are still aflame with rage at the ‘unfairness’ of it all.
Most of the attention over the … Read the rest >>
