Archive for the ‘Career Coaching and Mentoring’ Category

Professional and Personal Leadership for Today

“If you limit your choices only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want – and all that is left is a compromise. It’s your call.”

Effective leadership, both personally and professionally, will take many forms. But at its core, it necessarily includes the ability to:

  • Articulate a strategy – for yourself and the Organisation
  • Establish guiding principles
  • Make decisions quickly, efficiently and effectively
  • Earn the trust of people, include them in the process, treat them fairly, keep them informed and above all else communicate effectively
  • Keep yourself, people and hence the organisation focussed on the positive outcomes

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The Executive Mentor – the Goalkeeper – an Interview

“In the space of a fortnight, six different people told Paul Smith they were having a horrible time in their executive jobs. One told him that he wanted to resign forthwith. Another confessed to just having endured the worst month of his business life. A prominent Family Business owner said: “I just want to give up and sell up – it’s all too hard.”

These were not Paul’s employees, bosses or friends. They included corporate or government leaders, business owners and executives who engage him as a business mentor (and coach) and who felt free in a one-to-one setting, to confess how they were really feeling about their jobs. Big pay packets and titles are no buffer to human needs and emotions.

It’s a cliché, but life at the top really can be lonely or isolating, says Paul, because few employees can imagine that their “superiors” might sometimes feel vulnerable and bewildered. He’s been there too!

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