Emotional health

Contrasts and healing

Sue Gregory came to Alice Springs knowing she needed to be in this country yet not knowing what that would look like for her life. Frank Ansell comes from this country and understands that he has an important role in his community sharing his teachings and wisdom with others. Coming together was not coincidence and what they offer combines their worlds in an effortless flow. In the time you spend with Sue and Frank, you are invited to, and begin to, appreciate and understand the power of the land. You also start to connect to your own infinite potential.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:33+11:00September 24th, 2012|Emotional health|3 Comments

Rediscovering the gift of spontaneity

Lately I’ve become aware of what I feel is a growing reticence amongst people to speak spontaneously. This is particularly the case in group situations and especially amongst leaders, either when talking amongst themselves or to their staff. I have felt it myself: a sense of second-guessing as I go to say something, pulling back for fear of offending or being taken the wrong way. It has always been this way, of course: social norms demand that we moderate what we say in given situations. But it does seem that there is less acceptance of spontaneity at the moment...

By |2017-02-08T12:22:34+11:00August 13th, 2012|Emotional health, Leadership|Comments Off on Rediscovering the gift of spontaneity

External brand and leadership brand. How well do yours mesh?

There seems to be a disconnect between the public experience of the Olympic Games and the IOC’s jealous guarding of their symbols. It is similar to what we commonly see when there is a misalignment between the external brand of an organisation and the prevalent ‘leadership brand’ inside it. Organisations with a strong and resilient connection between external brand and the customer experience achieve this through their approach the development of leaders who have a strong brand themselves.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:34+11:00August 1st, 2012|Emotional health, Leadership|2 Comments

In hindsight

There are times in our lives when we can't help but look back with hindsight. As I go through one of those periods at the moment, I've been reflecting on the nature of hindsight itself. Its meaning, its value, its implications. Hindsight is about looking back, but it is more than just remembering. It is about looking back and allowing ourselves to understand the past with more clarity than we had at the time, whether that past was some years ago or only yesterday.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:34+11:00June 18th, 2012|Emotional health|9 Comments

Seeing over the horizon

Every time we return from one of our Leadership Experiences I am reinvigorated by the effect the week has on our participants. As I have written before, there is something particularly powerful about taking leaders well away from their everyday environment - something which stretches their development far more than we are able to do in a traditional setting. Our recent trip to Tetepare, from which we have just returned, left me thinking again about why working in these remote places is so important. It is all about seeing the horizon, both literally and metaphorically.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:34+11:00May 21st, 2012|Emotional health, Experiences, Leadership|Comments Off on Seeing over the horizon

The real difference between leadership and management

Continuing the theme of leadership of my last two posts, I thought it would be good to touch on the differences between management and leadership. Although this distinction is constantly debated in books and papers elsewhere, I think it is relevant here because it leads on from last time’s discussion about recognition of authentic leadership.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:34+11:00May 7th, 2012|Emotional health, Leadership|4 Comments

Leadership and recognition

Recognition and leadership have an interesting history together. In many of these cases, a recognised leader is a ‘big’ leader – someone with charisma, conviviality and, often, volume. He or she is someone comfortable in the spotlight and decisive in a crisis. There is nothing wrong with any of these characteristics, but it would be a mistake to think that they define leadership simply because they are characteristics common to prominent leaders. Authentic leadership is more than conspicuous leadership.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:35+11:00April 24th, 2012|Emotional health, Leadership|Comments Off on Leadership and recognition

The Caring Leader

When working with leaders, we notice that this form of caring is one of the gifts that others are attracted to. Caring leaders demonstrate a style of leadership which brings others along with them. But it needs to be inherent in the leader, not a part of their role. A caring leader is someone who has a genuine interest in others. Let me explain what I mean. (Dedicated to my father, Gordon Henderson, who passed away on March 27.)

By |2017-02-08T12:22:35+11:00April 12th, 2012|Emotional health, Leadership|7 Comments

Operating ‘above the line’ in practice – Part 2

In my last post I looked at emotional triggers that come from our environment and some ways we can learn to deal with these in an emotionally healthy way. Another source of triggers can be more ingrained: they come from long held beliefs and assumptions. There is an example of this sort of trigger which has become common around the streets of many Australian cities – and particularly Melbourne – over the last few years: the clash between motorists and cyclists. At times, displays of yelling and abuse between drivers and bike riders escalate to the verge of all-out battle...

By |2017-02-08T12:22:36+11:00February 27th, 2012|Emotional health|Comments Off on Operating ‘above the line’ in practice – Part 2

Operating ‘above the line’ in practice – Part 1

A question we get quite often when working with above and below the line and emotional health levels is “how can I use them in practice?” While ‘catching your reactions’ is an important first step towards operating above the line more often and building your emotional health, you also need to know where to go beyond that initial point of self-realisation.

By |2017-02-08T12:22:36+11:00February 15th, 2012|Emotional health|1 Comment

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