Communication
Systems Check!
The sudden splutter of the left engine halted the conversation that Sam was having with his copilot. Had he misheard? Imagined the slight misstep in tempo? He looked out the window towards the engine, and then back at his gauges, searching for irregularities – a rise in oil temperature, a drop in oil pressure, a…
Read MoreFinding Instant Unity
It’s always been a central belief of mine that focusing on what draws us together is key to building a powerful team. As soon as you put two or more people together, each brings their viewpoint, perspective, beliefs, values, life experiences etc to the table. As primal beings, we’re programmed to look for threats, and…
Read MoreRegenerating Team Energy
In a 2021 YouTube video, Gerhard Papenfus, CEO of the National Employers Association of South Africa, urged employers not to make quick-fix or knee-jerk implementations in response to the Covid pandemic suggested regulations, and rather to look further down the line. He asked, “Where will your culture be a year from now?”. It was a…
Read MoreWhen Soft Skills Become REAL Skills
All human beings have similar wants and needs. We want honesty, respect, integrity, and trust. We want to belong to something bigger than ourselves and to matter. The current state of global affairs and their effect on every level of our lives has exacerbated these needs, highlighting their deficit in our personal and professional lives. When we…
Read MoreHonesty. Respect. Integrity. Trust.
All human beings have similar wants and needs. We want honesty, respect, integrity, and trust. These four are intricately linked together. We want to belong to something bigger than ourselves and to matter. Wanting honesty, respect, integrity and trust is about wanting to live in an environment in which we feel safe. It’s about wanting…
Read MorePause. Breathe. Reassess.
Occasionally, we just need to pause. When we find ourselves with a churning or anxious mind, we need to pause. When we feel overwhelmed or unsure, we need to pause. When our nervous systems are caught in a state of fight or flight, constantly waiting for the next fire that needs extinguishing, we just need to…
Read MoreHow Responsible Is TOO Responsible?
Responsibility is a spectrum – meaning there’s a line ranging from completely irresponsible all the way to destructive over-responsibility… and all of us are on it somewhere. We all know that personal responsibility is something we start to learn early in life – brush your teeth, make your bed, represent yourself well, be nice to…
Read MoreDeveloping Safe Space for Difficult Conversations
Developing a safe space for difficult conversations is hard. It doesn’t matter what the conversation is about, who’s involved, or whether you’re trying to have it at home, at work, or with a friend – we have an innate fear of being a part of difficult conversations because they are threatening, feel unsafe, and often…
Read MoreWhat Makes You Valuable?
What is it that makes you valuable as a human being? What is it that makes you valuable as a teammate? I use the word teammate in the broadest sense, applying it to work and home, to sports and friendships, to community and country. What is it that makes you valuable as an individual –…
Read MoreThe Strength In Our Differences
It’s part of our survival instinct as human beings to look for threats and defend ourselves against them. Once upon a time, the part of our brain responsible for reacting to threats would have been on the alert for a sabre-toothed tiger. Today, the same part of our brain responsible for our survival instincts still…
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