Let me tell you the story of Shirin (not real name,) a manager in a large pharma company. Shirin was a high performer with a great track record. Despite being competent, reliable and hard-working, she had a tendency to sugarcoat her communication and found it challenging to speak up without trying to be “nice” and … Read More
I get it. You are a busy bee manager. You’re working hard every day. You’re solving everyone’s problems. You’re attending all important meetings. You’re always giving so much to everyone. You’re showing up for everyone in your team. What I am puzzled about is… How come with so much dedication you’re still in the background? … Read More
“What can trigger you to have a bad day?“ That’s the question I asked the participants of Elevate, the high impact leadership development programme for women. The training session was on Emotional Intelligence, a key leadership skill. “Stress with my kids,” replied one woman. “People. A bad interaction with someone,” said another lady. “My emotions,” … Read More
“My main career challenge is cultural,” confessed Nigella, a new manager at GE Renewable Energy. “I cannot bring myself to talk about myself, my work or my accomplishments. Someone else can do it, but not me. That’s the way I was brought up in my culture of origin.” A lot of women feel the same, … Read More
“Are leaders born or made?” This age-old question, which is a little too black-and-white, may have a whole lot of gray. Could it be that some people are born with certain leadership predispositions, an innate leadership blue-print to build on…yes! At the same time, there should exist those who lack these inborn leadership characteristics. And this … Read More
If you went to one of my workshops or were part of the group coaching assignments I led, you already heard me speak about the importance of building a healthy positive relationship with one’s boss. There are certain basic skills that everyone should be given access to, in order to succeed in and enjoy their professional life. … Read More
A day after Saint Valentin, the day that celebrates romantic love, I feel inspired to talk about our need to feel supported and nurtured at work. Given that we spend the mind-blowing 23 percent or more of our total lifetime working, it’s only normal that we want a tiny dose of that fuzzy special feeling that we automatically expect from … Read More