Fast Track To Fearless

Public Speaking tends to be one of those things that terrifies most people - mentally AND physically. So, how do you overcome that fear? Of course, there are lots of tools and techniques that help, but at the end of the day, you have to get up and speak, with all eyes on you! Have a listen to this week's episode with my take on this topic. Sign up for my weekly career and well-being tips strai...

You don’t need me to tell you the world around us is going through huge change: technological advancements, digital disruption, climate change, social norms and values of yesteryear no longer being the norm, expectations about working and quality of life. The pace of that change will only get faster, I think, what with advancements in AI. Rapid change can be bewildering and it’s tempting to cling...

You know the saying ‘ one door shuts, another opens but standing in the corridor is THE WORST’   So this week, I wanted to talk about  what to do if you suddenly find yourself in that corridor  - through job loss or any other change in circumstance. Standing in the corridor  can be a wretched, scary and lonely experience . Have a listen to the episode to find out what I recommend.   Sign up for my...

This is something I wish I’d known earlier.  Taking the balcony view. What does it mean?  Well, it’s  having an awareness and understanding of what your problem looks like from a layer up or two layers up  and from that perspective, you can evaluate what’s really important. Have a listen to to find out more.   Sign up for my weekly career and well-being tips straight to your inbox and find more wa...

At the time of speaking to you, here in the UK we’ve just had Storm Isha and are about to have Storm Jocelyn. Many people around the country with trees blown over, roof tiles flying off and disruption to travel caused by the windy, rainy weather. Frankly,  the stormy weather is a great metaphor for life in the 2020s ! We are living in turbulent times, often feeling buffeted and blown by one thing...

How much  does empathy play a role in your leadership style?  Are you ‘old school’ and think anything like that is a bit too soft to merit serious consideration? Were you brought up with leaders who were definitely more ‘tell don’t ask’ rather than ‘ask don’t tell? For you, is any discussion of feelings awkward? Well, you might be interested in the  business book of the year is called ‘Leader as H...

It might be useful to know that t here’s a new acronym  for the state of the world and its BANI. BANI  stands for  Brittle, Anxious, Non-Linear and Incomprehensible . Listen to the episode to find out how to get ready for this BANI World.   Sign up for my weekly career and well-being tips straight to your inbox and find more ways I can help on the Free Resources page on my website.   https://fastt...

When my husband and I went to pick up our daughter from university, the weather was awful, and the motorway was busy. My husband is a confident driver, but I am not a good passenger.  If I’m not driving, I often feel car sick  for starters. I don’t like going too fast or too near. Plus I’m hyper-alert for any dangers. Which means I’m very vocal with the shrieks and the imaginary slamming of the br...

Do you have a strong sense of who you are, how you operate best, what you stand for and what really makes you thrive?  If not, I really recommend taking the time to develop it. ​ I think having  a strong sense of self is really the foundation of true confidence and internal validation . If you rely on external validation and approval of others for your sense of worth, it can be a precarious way to...

Do you often feel like you are  a bit of a wallflower in meetings? What I mean is,  rarely saying anything , being  scared to ask a question  or raise a point in case you are wrong? Are you  held back by a fear of looking stupid?  Do you then feel stupid for not saying anything? Well, fear not,  you are most definitely not alone!  This topic comes up so much in coaching. Why does it matter?  Well,...

I work mainly with people in the creative industries and from what I can see this is  the toughest year yet in the 30 years  that I worked. Fluctuations in the market, disruption, strikes, you name it, it’s been incredibly tough.  The knock-on effect of that is a lack of jobs or fear of losing roles  or too many qualified people for the amount of vacancies out there. So how do you keep your self-b...

I know it’s not just me who occasionally  wakes up around 4 a.m. with worries on my mind . One minute, you are sleeping soundly; the next minute, you are wide awake, counting the catastrophes and impending doom. How do I know it’s not just me? Because when I googled 4a.m. worrying things like  ‘nocturnal anxiety’   ‘4 a.m. thoughts’  and a whole load of questions and possible answers come up. List...

It’s such a distressing time in the news at the moment and it’s unfortunately going to be distressing for quite a while. At times, I’ve felt doubt about having the right words or knowing exactly what to say or do. Asking myself, is it my place, will I say the wrong thing, will I offend etc listen to this week’s episodes for some examples of things you can say, when you don’t know what to say.   Si...

Do you want a highly effective method for achieving? Try VOHSAC, a method or framework for achieving that I discovered most highly effective leaders do without particularly realising it. ​ Have a listen to this podcast episode to find out what VOHSAC means.   Sign up for my weekly career and well-being tips straight to your inbox and find more ways I can help on the Free Resources page on my websi...

This is for people who find January hard.  Post-holiday season let down, tiredness because of said holiday season, or the loneliness for many during holiday seasons, dark days, rain, need I go on?   We say ‘Happy New Year” automatically but it’s not always so happy for everyone!     Listen to this week’s episodes for some examples of things I find useful to tack the January Gloom   Sign up for my...

2024 is upon us and it is that time of year when people start thinking about what they want to be different.     One tool I think is absolutely brilliant at this time of year is the Wheel of Life.  It can help you work out how to go from mediocre to memorable (in a good way) in terms of your year ahead.   You can click here to get the version I use with clients from the Co-Active Training Institut...

Last year, I think I told you how much I turn into a Bah Humbug Scrooge at Christmas, what with the extra expense, consumerism, buying, wrapping, clearing up, cooking, buying, cleaning etc. I won’t go on. Of course, there is so much I love about the holidays, namely, being with the family and having quality time. But no-one can tell me it’s a relaxing time of year - unless maybe you are one of tho...

I don't know about you but when I think about 2023 I’d say it’s been like being in a tumble drier. It makes me think of the three witches in Macbeth saying; ​When shall we three meet again? And the answer being, ​When the hurly burly’s done When the battle’s lost and won ​ ​2023 has felt like hurly-burly, noisy disorder and commotion, just lots and lots of turmoil. ​I want to encourage you to...

You know how they say there are some people who walk into a room and the atmosphere changes? In a good way? There are people who make their presence felt, who you can’t help but notice. Well, I think there’s a way to create that effect intentionally. So, if you’ve ever felt like a wallflower or awkward in a meeting or room of people and are open to trying some new ideas, have a listen to this week...

Most people are scared of change, frightened by the unknown and the feeling of not being in control of what’s going to happen. But I think there’s a way to find it positively scary. So change often is scary but standing still, in the long run, can be even scarier in terms of what you don’t end up doing, what you miss out on and experience. So it’s worth it to feel the fear and do it anyway. It’s w...

“If at first you don’t succeed…try, try again!” goes the saying. But I think that misses a crucial bit between the ‘not succeeding’ and the ‘trying again’. If we just hurl ourselves back into the trying again one, it can feel relentless and exhausting, AND we might miss out on some crucial learnings. ​ So this is what I think: if at first you don’t succeed, follow this 5 R process before trying ag...

Most of the people I work with are perfectionists. Driven, determined, focused on getting things right and doing the absolute best they can. ​ And there are a lot of benefits from being a perfectionist - it often goes hand-in-hand with high-achieving, extremely talented deliverers. There’s no way a perfectionist would intentionally drop the ball, be sloppy or allow themselves to go with the flow....

Don’t forget the good stuff. Stop and notice it. I think it’s good for the soul,never mind the body and the mind. This week, my family and I were thrilled to attend one of our kids’ prize-giving ceremonies at school. It was wonderful to see all these children being awarded prizes for everything from academic prowess, to sport to art, drama and music. When you are grown up, you don’t have schools n...

You know that saying, ‘What am I - chopped liver?’ Well, that’s what I remember thinking when I was made redundant a few years ago. ‘How come you don’t want me?!’ That, and I that wanted the outside world to think that it was MY choice to leave the company rather than have people think I was pushed. So in my leaving email, it was ‘Tracy has decided to leave’ rather than ‘Tracy was made redundant’....

Often in coaching, you are working with a client who is in transition - from stepping up into a more senior role or company or making a career change. They are one place and they want to move to another, find something new, or change how they are now into how they truly want to be. Sometimes, they have a very clear vision of where they want to be and how they want to live. Sometimes, they don’t an...