Measuring your progress against what is left to be done and what’s next can be uninspiring and downright demotivating. Notice how the horizon always moves away from you as you walk or sail towards it? It is far healthier, accurate and spirit lifting to measure progress against how far you have already travelled. This is [...] Read more »
Creating the Conditions for Optimism
When was the last time you told a story about the way things will be? Difficult to recall? When was the last time you pointed out the problems that exist or the bad things that have recently occurred? Not so difficult to ID that one right?! I don’t normally do old, Greek or dead geezers [...] Read more »
Chasing Security…
You need to be pretty fit to chase security. Most of what is considered secure is transient and a moving target: A secure job (one where you won’t get sacked, moved, overlooked or transferred) Secure relationships (those where you know exactly where the other person is heading, thinking or that you are a permanent feature [...] Read more »
Ambition Is Fueled By Possibility
People who are forced to make it on their own have drive. People who receive a lot of support and direction have dependency right? This is the view some politicians push when it comes to whether or not it is a good thing to support the individual (grants, benefits, programmes and so on) But, of [...] Read more »
Adult Onset ADD: Adventure Deficit Disorder
Big news item today on the latest survey results of the nations ‘happiness index’. Some would say there is an element of the blinking obvious; people are happiest as teens, go downhill in midlife and then get happier again in retirement. Why the midlife can be less happy is not about happiness – it’s about [...] Read more »
The need to motivate others is a sign!
The moment you feel the need to motivate someone, you’ve made a hiring mistake or you’ve put the right person is in the wrong role. The’ right’ people don’t need to be motivated. Challenged, lead, taught, acknowledged – yes. But not motivated. The right people in the right job show up motivated. The only thing [...] Read more »
Wrapping Up 2011
Bring your year end to a definite conclusion and start 2012 with a clear direction. (Why wouldn’t you?) Myself and Mrs. Fox sit down every year about this time with a glass of sherry and a mince pie and run through the following ‘completion exercise’. In doing so we have tied up and reflected on [...] Read more »
Force Generates Resistance – Excellent News!
Everyone’s heard of resistance training right? You get on a machine in the gym, load it with with weights and will your muscles to move the stack. The resistance of the load is what make your muscles scream in objection, break down and ultimately repair and become stronger. Resistance to you and your ideas also [...] Read more »
Change is not Difficult at all. Transition is the Killer
Change is not difficult – Transition is difficult. It’s not starting something new that is tricky, we are good at that. It’s leaving what’s old and familiar behind that we find painful, messy, awkward or just in the too hard category. Change is easy…Transitions are hard. Yesterday you were single, today you are married. Last [...] Read more »
The Confidence Game
People and their confidence is not a fixed relationship. The significant people around you often have their confidence dwindle, sometimes to almost nothing. The ‘cost’ of that is they’ll play a smaller game and avoid being extra-ordinary. Don’t even bother asking ask ‘Do I impact on staff confidence?“ You do. Every interaction you have with [...] Read more »