Your Time To Grow

Once you’ve done the hard work, spent time reflecting on what’s important to you, it is the time to communicate your values.

We could all do with being more vulnerable. My daughters have taught me so much about being vulnerable and I’d like to share a story and ask: how can you be more vulnerable?

I'm a certified personal and career coach who helps you minimise your doubts and maximise your potential...of course, we don’t always maximise our potential, sometimes we self-sabotage and we give our power away. Let me tell you a little story about me and my daughter.

For over ten years I have talked to so many people about their careers – the highs, the lows and the fears. In my experience there are three main fears which hold people back: - Fear of failure; Fear of success and Fear of change. These fears can be debilitating. They can stop you from doing even the simplest things to further your career and keep you stuck, or at least feeling stuck.

I can be a procrastinator. One of my biggest reasons for procrastinating is not knowing what to do. So in today’s episode I am going to talk to you about how to get started when you don’t know what to do. 

I am in the first week after the summer holidays and (finally) I have been able to have an uninterrupted adult conversation! My friend and I went out for a coffee and during the conversation she asked me ‘how do you alleviate the guilt of being grateful for what you have but also wanting more?’ I really felt the sentiment. We all have moments where we feel ungrateful for what we have, even when we...

I feel like a have a million things to do, my energy is going everywhere but me. I could scream. Ever feel like that? When you’re someone who gives a lot it’s easy to forget about yourself and your needs. We are halfway through the summer holidays here in the UK and in our house it's been busy! Although I do take a break in the holidays, I don't always take care of myself during that time. I'm not...

I'm floundering this week, although it's the summer holidays and I've cut down my work, I noticed yesterday that I was feeling really demotivated about my current work goals. As I let this thought reverberate around my mind during the day I realised I was living an old family motto.

Childcare sorted? Check. New clothes? Check. Self-care strategy? Wait, what? Returning to work after having a child is both rewarding and challenging. I have already discussed the practical side of returning to work after maternity leave and about the emotional doubts which come from stepping back into the office. Today I want to talk to you about managing your self-care and keeping yourself toppe...

When you invest in yourself you are doing more than spending time and money. You are putting yourself higher up your priority list. Whether it's developing yourself personally or professionally, to invest in yourself is likely to be the best investment you make.

Have you ever wondered if you are missing out? If you should be doing more? Have you ever considered the fact that you are exactly where you need to be? This is called happenstance and it’s common to hear folks say they were just in the right place a the right time, but what about when we don’t feel in the right place at the right time?

We all have bad habits. Sometimes I procrastinate and leave my work until the last minute. Take this podcast for example, I have had plenty of time to finish this…but it’s 2pm on the day it’s due and I want to get it done asap… but having had over an hour of uninterrupted silence after getting up (which I spent on watching the TV)…it’s almost time to pick up the kids. Drat.

Today we are talking about progress, not perfection. Let me tell you a story. I looked at my running stats, I was ten miles short of where I wanted to be that month. I spent hours working out if I could squeeze in a few more runs. Of course I would be able to but it would mean sacrificing something else. In the back of my mind a question floated around: will it matter in 12 months time? The truth...

Life can get pretty busy and when it does, listening goes out the window. When we are busy we can feel overwhelmed and stressed out and feeling this way makes it hard to listen – to ourselves and to others. Main body I was reading an article by the University of Missouri which said that 45% of our time in daily communication is used to listen and yet it is one of our most ineffective communication...

Saying yes. Imagine that you said yes to every opportunity that came your way? Shonda Rhimes did for a whole year and it changed her life. It could change yours too, if you're strategic about it.

Changing your career can feel very uncertain and indeed it can be uncertain. This is especially true if you have been doing something/been in a role for a long time. Before you make the leap it’s important to make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons. With that in mind, in today’s episode I want to give you three things to consider before changing your career.

Have you ever wondered about the secret of success and how *those* people get ahead? I can tell you the secret – there is no secret. Getting ahead is about the mindset you have and the behaviours you exhibit and best of all, they can be learnt, practised and implemented. Here are 8 behaviours that successful people demonstrate for you to start with…

One of my favourite pictures of change is that one where the leader says “who wants change?” and everyone puts their hands up. Then the leader asks “who wants to change?” and everyone looks at the floor. Change is hard sometimes, especially when we don’t choose it but what if we change our perspective and choose to be a leader of change?

Today I want to talk about nurturing your leadership skills. Maybe you already lead a team, maybe you are aspiring to that. You don't have to lead a team in a company/institution to be a leader - you might be self-employed, a parent or a volunteer down at your local sports or social club or within the community. This episode is for all the people who use leadership skills - formally or informally.

When was the last time you felt heard? Like someone was really listening to what you had to say? As we are in Mental Health Awareness Week I wanted to touch on why listening to others (and ourselves) is so important and two tips on how to be a better listener too.

As women, we face different challenges in the workplace to our male colleagues, particularly in positions of leadership. These range from being held to a higher standard than our male counterparts to having to contend with old-fashioned notions such as choosing between “a career or a child?”. Overcoming these obstacles can seem daunting, but there are strategies you can use to turn these barriers...

When I speak to mums in my tribe about going back to work the number one thing they say to me is: “I don’t have the right skills anymore”. Now they might not say it in exactly those words but that is the underlying message. I believe that ultimately it’s a lack of confidence we suffer from when we return to work after a break but to tackle that, we need to face those fears head-on. After the previ...

Raising a family takes love, time and effort and is often described as one of the most rewarding things you can do. Days turn into months and years and suddenly the kids are at school and you are ready to do something for you. Sound familiar? Many parents I speak to find themselves wanting to return to the workplace after a significant career break of anywhere from 5 to 20 years. Do you want to kn...

It always amazes me how soon you need to start planning your return to work after your little one arrives. You think you have all the time in the world and suddenly your baby is 6 months old, sitting up, eating and starting to move around and it's time to start planning your return (or not). Preparation is key. Let's look at the logistical and emotional needs in returning to work.

It's 2015: In the top left hand corner of my diary there is a number scrawled in black ink. It tells me that I have 36 working days left before I leave for my second bout of maternity leave. Hindsight is a useful thing isn’t it? The benefit of going through this process once already has made me make crucial changes in preparing to leave. I thought it might be useful to share my experience.