In what ways do senior leaders need to think differently?

Leadership roles require different cognitive skills than many of the roles we do earlier on in our careers, but often we are expected to work this out for ourselves.

In this podcast, Richard and Ricky explore what this means. What is different about the way in which senior people need to think, and what does that mean for them and the way that they work?

This podcast is the third of four podcasts considering what is required of anyone who wants to take a senior role or highly demanding job in an organisation.

You can find out more about the four areas and how we use them here.

Do leaders have a natural strength or are they better at building resilience?

Leadership roles, big all-encompassing roles can be great fun, but doing them can have a big impact on your physical and mental health.

While it might look like the people who end up in these top jobs just have natural resilience. However, for many, resilience is actually part of their leadership discipline. 

In this podcast, Richard and Paul reflect on the habits and behaviours that they have seen in leaders who continually build their resilience to ensure they have the physical and mental health to deal with the demands of the role.

This podcast is the third of four podcasts considering what is required of anyone who wants to take a senior role or highly demanding job in an organisation.

You can find out more about the four areas and how we use them here.

Why do leaders need to consider the impact of their job on their personal life?

While sometimes it is hard to admit, if you have a big job, such as a senior leadership role, it does impact almost every part of your life. To operate successfully in these demanding roles, you need to be able to find a balance between work and private lives that works for you and for the others in your life. Managing this balance, and some of the conflict that naturally arises out of it is something that is often only tackled when problems arise.

Richard and Ricky explore how leaders can develop a clear understanding of their priorities (work and home) and engage their families in the decisions about how to manage the demands of their role.

This podcast is the second of four podcasts considering what is required of anyone who wants to take a senior role or highly demanding job in an organisation.

You can find out more about the four areas and how we use them here

In what ways do senior leaders need to be aware of what’s happening around them?

Senior people need high levels of awareness to be able to do their jobs effectively, but what exactly does it mean to be more aware. In this podcast, Richard and Paul discuss how awareness of self, others, their organisation and the market place is different as people rise in organisations, and for those wishing to do so how they might start developing that awareness.

This podcast is the first of four podcasts considering what is required of anyone who wants to take a senior role or highly demanding job in an organisation.

Why is empathy a vital leadership skill?

Do you need to understand others to be able to lead them, or is a compelling idea or vision enough?

In this podcast, Richard and Paul explore the role of empathy in our lives, talking through what empathy is, and the advantages and disadvantages of empathy to leaders. Can people who master empathy can utilise this trait to become more effective leaders?

Why am I suddenly so critical of myself?

All of us can be hard on ourselves sometimes, but when we are under pressure, or stressed, or like right now worn out after a difficult year, sometimes our inner critic can be very harsh.

In this podcast, Richard and Rob explore why this happens and some of the things that we might be doing that with a little awareness we can take control of and change our thinking to make it more helpful and hopeful.

How can I help team members who are feeling overwhelmed?

Lockdown just seems to go on and on, and even though the end is finally in sight, for lots of people it feels like this last bit might be the hardest.

If you have people in your organisation that look like they are running on empty, then in this podcast, Ricky and Paul will help you understand what might be causing this and provide practical tips to help you to help them.

How can I (and my team) become more resilient?

This year has been tough, leaving many people drained, some days struggling to find the energy to get through the day. Why have the last few months been so draining, and what can we do about it?

This time on the podcast, Rich and Paul explore resilience and discuss small changes that any of us can do to build our resilience back up. These simple strategies can be used to help ensure ourselves, our team members and even family and friends are better equipped to cope.

Why does this lockdown feel harder?

As lockdowns continue in many countries around the world, we wondered why this time feels so much harder than the first lockdown back in March.

With their change management heads on, Ricky, Richard and Paul talk about the factors that are causing us to struggle. 

We cannot promise any answers but hopefully can shed a little light on why we might all be feeling it a little more right now.