How do I re-engage my people?

This time on the podcast, we ask a very relevant question for the last quarter of 2021, as we work through this strange lull in the pandemic, trying to act like it is over yet without being really sure that it is.

This leads to a feeling that we should be getting back to normal, yet for many going back to what they were doing still feels a way off. As leaders, how do we engage people who have lost their sense of purpose, or are having to do something slightly different as their organisation adjusts and repositions?

However, this is not just an issue that is pandemic related. Any time an organisation experiences significant change, a high proportion of people will find their purpose, their reason for being there, impacted. It may be put on hold, or changed completely, and it is the leaders who need to engage them back into the business, helping them find new meaning and motivation so that they can continue to perform.

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Posted On September 27, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Change, Culture, Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /  

How do I create a high performing hybrid workforce?

With many organisations considering hybrid working, what does that change about the ways that we manage people?

Ricky and Paul walk through some of the key areas that managers need to consider if they are leading a team that combines working styles – office, home and various hybrid options.

In some ways, managing a team is managing a team, and where the team works should not make much difference. Yet, in other ways, mixing home workers and office workers can create some unique challenges that will require teams, and managers, to change their approach to maintain peak performance.

Photo by Jaz King on Unsplash

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Posted On July 22, 2021 By webadmin In Culture, Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /  

Will a hybrid model for the workplace be as easy as it sounds?

As the pandemic lockdown hopefully draws to a close, many of us are starting to consider how will we work going forward. Will we return to the office as if nothing happened, or will many people carry on working from home?

Many organisations are considering hybrid working, splitting the working week between home and office, but is this a simple as it sounds? 

In this podcast, Paul and Ricky explore some of the challenges and advantages, from power to personality, collaboration to management style; we think about what needs to happen to make this approach work for everyone.

Photo by Jonathan Farber on Unsplash

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Posted On July 1, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Culture, Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /  

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.

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Posted On June 18, 2021 By Paul Hutchinson In Leadership, Podcasts, Productivity, The question is /  

How to achieve success in 2025 with a proven process.

Discover the secret to boosting your productivity at work!

Follow these tips, and you’ll be able to get more done in less time and feel more organized and efficient in your daily tasks. Whether you’re a working professional or a student, these tips will help you achieve your goals and meet your deadlines.

So let’s get started! These tips will help you improve your productivity at work! Whether you’re unstructured, find it hard to plan or dive in without thinking it through first, our Actions Model – FoooDo will help you to be more productive and effective more often.

FoooDo has six steps designed to help you get clarity, be more creative and critically evaluate which ideas are worth pursuing as you work to achieve your goals.

Be more successful with FoooDo, the ultimate #coachingmodel that will help you think, plan and execute your goals more robustly. Achieve what you want!

FoooDo is a central component of the Thinking Focus Toolkit for Team Leaders and Managers.

Thinking Focus Toolkit


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Posted On May 21, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Confidence, Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking, Goals, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Motivation, Performance Management, Productivity, Video /  

Why do we sometimes step up and other times shy away from opportunities?

Our mindset is vital in whether we are open or closed to opportunities.

In this video, we explore five ownership levels that describe our openness to new opportunities. The shoe salesman story illustrates how two people can see the same opportunity in two very different ways.

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Posted On May 11, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Culture, Engagement, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Motivation, Psychological Safety, Resilience, Video /  

Eisenhower Matrix – Why Urgent Doesn’t Make it Important

The Eisenhower Matrix helps you decide whether urgent means important. It helps you to prioritize your work and helps you focus on what’s important right now!

It will also help you to stop doing those tasks that add no value to you. In this video, we share why the Eisenhower matrix is such a powerful tool for making you more productive and effective. Learn how to use the tool and access a free downloadable template you can use as much as you like and share with your colleagues and friends.

Critical thinking is an essential part of the Thinking Focus Toolkit for Team Leaders and Managers. Here’s a link to the free download https://bit.ly/urgentversusimportant

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Posted On April 29, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Critical Thinking, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Performance Management, Productivity, Video /  

Are you focused on the right activities for your goals.

Use critical thinking tools to ensure you’re focusing on what matters.

Critical thinking follows creative thinking or task analysis; it helps you to prioritise where to spend your time.  They work by eliminating bias, which means you will make more objective decisions rather than relying on your gut or what you like to do.

Whether you are awash with ideas or overloaded with tasks, the ability to critically evaluate where best to spend your time and what will add the most value and make you most productive is an essential skill.

With the Ease versus Impact Critical Thinking Tool, you can ensure you are focused on the highest value activities all the time.

Critical thinking is essential to the Thinking Focus Toolkit for Team Leaders and Managers. This is a free downloadable resource that wiill help you, but don’t keep it to yourself; feel free to use it and share it; you can access it here:

Thinking Focus Toolkit


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Posted On March 24, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Critical Thinking, Decision Making, Goals, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Management, Metacognition, Mindset, Productivity, Video /  

Are poor behaviours holding your organisation back?

Want behaviour change in your company?

At Thinking Focus, we believe teams and business units underperform not by choice but because of self-imposed and organisational constraints.

We help people adopt a growth mindset that unlocks interference and accelerates the adoption of new behaviours, which leads to greater organisational performance.

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Posted On March 11, 2021 By Ricky Muddimer In Change, Culture, High Performing Teams, Leadership, Mindset, Productivity, Video /