Aid for Aid Workers Leadership Podcast

Some of you have asked for a peek behind my coaching course - how is it run?  How do we ensure students complete the course successfully? In response I interviewed Maureen Murigi, my Admin Support Manager for the course.  Maureen shares what the course looks like from her perspective - and the challenges she faces while making sure students have what they need to finish successfully. If you'd like...

Many of you have asked whether or not you should take my digital coaching course, which teaches a "coaching leadership style." What I tell aid workers is that this way of leading is the future for the aid world, or at least the future we envision - a more inclusive, localized approach.   But you don't have to take my word for it.  Today's guest Leah Marie Lucas is one of my former students and she...

Recently I had a group of 38 students from CRS Uganda take my coaching course. I asked a panel of four (Olive D'Mello, Florence Ayo, Dismus Arineitwe and Emmanuel Obuko) to answer some questions about what changed for them since taking the course.  You'd be surprised! Here are a few things they mention: Using coaching as a way to learn with their team (reflection) Creating an empowering culture wh...

Today's guest has really done it. He has taken what he learned about coaching and created a culture within his organization that has resulted in a more proactive team.  And that means Salif has time to focus on the important, including growing his organization. In short, Salif Kanoute, President of DECLIC NGO in Senegal, has gotten out of his own way. This is not easy as a leader - we often think...

We've arrived at episode 200 - I can't believe it!  For this special occasion I have asked a special guest to come on the podcast.. my husband Shannon. Shannon has over 20 years' experience working for INGO's and the UN in numerous countries from Haiti to Afghanistan. He's had a lot of experience in the field, and unfortunately also a lot of experience under toxic leadership.  In this episode we d...

Are you feeling demotivated with development or humanitarian work? It can show up in different ways. Maybe you're feeling more tired than usual. Or you just don't feel like checking your email.   Or getting to that task---whatever it is. Today I am going to walk you through four simple steps to overcome feelings of demotivation so you can start becoming your more energized self. They are steps I h...

I was honored to do a Time Management Master Training at the WILD Forum last week.  After the training, I found myself looking through the participants' comments for feedback.  And I quickly stopped myself. While receiving feedback is wonderful, we need to be careful when we find ourselves craving it.  In my case, I was craving the feedback to confirm that "this presentation is amazing" - or reall...

Wouldn't it be great if we knew exactly what a community wanted without talking to them? If we knew what the community wanted, we could skip all the design meetings, all the planning and just get started with implementation. It would be great.  But it's not reality. Although we may want to rush, when we fix things quickly now we can make them harder in the long run. The same goes for supervising o...

Sometimes creating a more diverse and inclusive environment in the aid sector seems like a huge task that's going to take time.  And there is some truth in that. That said, there are things we as humanitarian leaders can start doing immediately with our existing teams to create more diversity.  Things that we may not normally consider. My guest today Saraounia Mboka-Boyer has 13 years' experience...

How often do you tell yourself or hear your team say "I Don't Know"? "I don't know how to do a donor presentation." "I don't know how to write a strategic plan." "I don't know how to manage my time." It sounds like a reasonable thing. To not know how. But often times, we use it as an excuse. An excuse to not take action. And so we are stuck and stay the same. And nothing happens. It's important to...

Handling conflict as a humanitarian leader can be scary. How do we best address conflict so that it is a win-win for us and the other person(s) involved? My guest today, Jo Rodrigues, has 16 years' experience working with the UN, INGO's and various other organizations on how to overcome conflict in a way that everyone feels understood and valued. You may be surprised by some of the steps to resolv...

In last week's episode, Chen Kadungure and I talked about how to create focus and eliminate distractions so you can do more focused or deep work. Once again deep work is focused, uninterrupted,  undistracted  work on a task that pushes your cognitive abilities to their limit. Examples of this include——writing or reviewing a donor report, proposal writing, strategic planning, or creating a new way...

“If you don't produce, you won't thrive—no matter how skilled or talented you are.”  Cal Newport, author of “Deep Work” Noisy generators.  Crowing roosters.  Loud music. Working in the aid world can be very distracting! Not to mention all the email, texts and other notifications. Sometimes it's hard to create an environment for focus. So you can do the IMPORTANT work.... concentrated work. The wor...

Today is a bit different from our typical episode.   After publishing "The Power of Silence", which discusses how we can use silence for more meaningful communication, I received a question from a longtime listener. She asked "how do we use silence (or should we) during a difficult conversation?" This is a great question, and so I decided to do a follow up episode to answer it! How DO we use silen...

If there's one thing we can count on in humanitarian work, it's CHANGE! We are constantly making transitions - and as leaders, even more so. Whether it's managing a new team, a new project or just wanting to become a better leader, being intentional about how we transition can make a big difference in how we show up. In this episode my guest and fellow coach Asel Ormonova provides ways you can mak...

We all know the nightmares.  You go through a hiring process -- and think you've found the perfect candidate. They have tons of great experience.  And they have a great network. You can't wait for them to start working on your team! Until... their true character is shown.  Perhaps they are late to work repeatedly.  Or maybe they don't trust anyone on the team.  Or maybe they cause a lot of conflic...

Have you heard of the TV show Undercover Boss? It's where a senior manager for a large company disguises themselves and then works alongside their staff on the ground. What usually happens is they find out all the things going right, but also those going wrong. And what's interesting is the people on the ground know what's going wrong and know how to solve it - but don't have the power to change i...

"Man can be destroyed but not defeated." - Hemingway Mehmet Gunes has not had it easy. After the conflict broke out in Syria, he lost everything. And so he had to look for a new livelihood in a new country. Fortunately he had his poetry to help him persevere. After facing failure after failure, he found his calling:  mixing music with learning. In this episode he shares his journey and how music a...

Whether it's due to a pandemic, working in a field office or across continents, remote work is a reality as a humanitarian leader. But with working remotely comes a sense of distance - not just phsyically but mentally too. So how do we close the gap and unite our teams given the challenges of remote work? In this episode Chenai Kadungure and myself provide some ways you can unite your team despite...

There are plenty of reasons to not put a lot of effort into our appearance.  Working behind a computer or a mask may make us think that "it doesn't matter" how we look. But the thing is - it's not just about how you appear to others. It's also how you appear to yourself that matters. In today's episode Chenai Kadungure and myself discuss aid worker fashion statements and how we look impacts not on...

Hurricane damage.  Flooding.  Civil conflict.  Whatever the disaster, as humanitarian leaders it is essential we know how to quickly adapt and do the best we can. And that means being productive while also maintaining our sanity. My guest today Jenelle Eli is an expert in adapting to extreme environments.  This in part is because her success in her role as the Senior Director of Media Relations an...

Do you ever feel like you're not qualified for the position you're in? If so you're not alone. Especially for women, it is common to feel what is called "imposter syndrome" or that you don't really belong in your current role. So how can you overcome it? The key is awareness and knowing how to recognize it.   In today's episode Chenai Kadungure and myself discuss what imposter syndrome is, why wom...

If you listen to this podcast you already know how important leadership is in the humanitarian and international development space. Great leaders can motivate others toward achieving a shared vision. Not so great leaders can cause team members to work long hours, lose motivation and quit their roles. So how do we become great leaders, the kind that we admire? One way is by going WILD. The Women In...

Last week we discussed what to do before you set goals for the year. Today I am sharing an unconventional way of achieving your goals more easily and quickly. I had not considered this part of goal setting before, but now that I am it has made a BIG difference in how I achieve my goals. A few simple questions and reflection can put you on track to end your year on track and becoming the person you...

A new year has begun - and that means new possibilities! The best way to achieve a future you're excited about is to define what you want. Goal setting is how we define the future we want. Setting goals is motivating and exciting, but many of us overlook a best practice in setting goals. In this episode you'll learn what to do BEFORE setting next year's goals as a humanitarian leader. This is an i...