Blind Spots and Hot Spots: Navigating Unseen Risks and Opportunities in Teams

Walking the dog around where I live, I’m constantly reminded of life’s unpredictability. You never know when something might dart out of the bushes—whether it’s a wallaby, a rabbit, or even a snake slithering across the path! These moments make me think of blind spots and hot spots, not just on a walking trail, but
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Navigating Feedback When You Are Told You Shine “Too Much”

Receiving feedback from your boss that you’re “too much” or need to “tone it down” can be challenging, especially when you’re passionate about your work. However, this feedback doesn’t mean your strengths are liabilities. Instead, it’s an opportunity to harness your abilities more effectively and ensure they align with your professional environment. Here’s how to
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How to Speak Up When Your Boss Says You’re Too Quiet

Next in this instalment of ‘TOO’ is the one for my deep-thinking friends. When your Boss tells you that you should speak up more, that you are too quiet. In the workplace, it’s easy to feel pressured to conform to louder, more assertive communication styles. However, if you’ve been told you’re too quiet, it’s crucial
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Navigating Feedback That Suggests You’re ‘TOO Much’

‘You shine TOO much’ ‘You’re TOO quiet’ ‘You’re TOO loud’ All statements I have heard recently from coachee’s and I have even heard myself (the too loud one, or too fast, too assertive). When I hear this, I am often drawn back to a talk I listened to between Marcus Buckingham and Adam Grant at
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Guiding Principle – Themes are not labels

Humans are way too complex to be described by one word. In a world that often seeks to categorize and pigeonhole individuals into neat boxes, the CliftonStrengths assessment stands out as a beacon of empowerment and self-discovery. Developed by Gallup, this assessment helps individuals identify their natural talents and strengths, enabling them to leverage these
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How leaders can coach teams to use their unique talents to boost productivity

Every person in the world has talent. Talent can be defined as a naturally occurring pattern of thought, feeling, and behaviour. These might include seeing patterns in data, thinking in an orderly manner, sensing the moods of others, or being able to start conversations with strangers. When using our talents, we typically do things that
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Power of Harmony in the Workplace

When my two boys were young, one of their favourite TV programs on Cartoon Network was Ben 10.  It was about a boy, Ben Tennyson, who discovers the Omnitrix — a high-tech, extraterrestrial watch-looking device. This ‘watch’ contained the DNA of various alien species which allowed Ben to transform into them at will.  One of
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Strategies for Thriving During Times of Change

I had the wonderful opportunity to share, as the keynote speaker for the 5th annual CliftonStrengths Philippines conference, some strategies for thriving during times of change. I am a big fan of models that complement CliftonStrengths.  I think of CliftonStrengths like Windex in the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding.  The old Greek father sprays

Doing Strengths vs. Being Strengths Based

I love what I do, working with teams and organisations to help them become strengths-based.  So often I will hear a leader say, “Oh I have done a Strengths workshop”. Discovering your Strengths is just the start of the journey and scratching the surface.  When I am doing a half day or even full day

What makes a great team?

I have been very fortunate to facilitate some amazing high performing teams. I get so much satisfaction from watching them develop and grow achieving great things together. This is probably because I have the Clifton Strengths Finder theme Maximiser as my number 7 talent, from the Gallup definition “people exceptionally talented in the Maximizer theme