Women, it’s time to stamp out the naysayers

  In my previous post, I made a call for Women, it’s time to Be Bold. As part of my own Be Bold journey, I am running my first London marathon on 26 April. At aged 48 and with a dodgy left knee and hip, it pales in comparison to the parathletes at the Paralympics…

Women: It’s time to Be Bold

 Last Friday I was invited to attend the Forward Ladies Women in Business awards. One of the speakers was Rachel Hannan, who co-founded Gatenby Sanderson, a leading executive recruiter and now a business adviser and angel investor. As she shared her entrepreneurial journey, citing Angela Coutts as a role model, her message was for women…

Be Bold in 2015

“Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid”, Basil King Join me and a small group of like-minded women as we find the courage, commitment, support and help to achieve the results, success  and fulfilment that we desire  On the 26th April 2015 I will running my first London Marathon for Children with…

4 ways to boost your confidence and self belief

Have you ever been in a situation in which you did not perform as well as you could or something untoward happened which has resulted in your confidence being blown away? If like me and many others, just thinking about it fills you with dread and a reluctance to put yourself in such situations again?…

Getting to aha moments with your staff

There is nothing more magical than observing a client harnessing his creativity and inner resources to generate that ‘aha’ moment. Oscar, one of my clients entered the room, appearing to be carrying the world on his shoulders which are hunched, a look of weariness on his face and fatigue in his body. He had been…

Are you Thriving at work?

Last week I organised and spoke at the Thrive Yorkshire Business Growth Conference. I facilitated a discussion on Thriving. I deliberately chose to focus on ‘the self’ as often in our busy 24/7 lives we  tend to forget about the most important asset –ourselves. We can learn new skills, acquire knowledge about marketing, sales and how to be…

Eeh by gum, that was Grand

When the world’s biggest cycle race came to Yorkshire, it did so with a big bang last weekend. Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 July were a climax after events across the county in the 100 days leading up to the Grand Depart. I am not a cyclist nor am I a cycling fan. However I…

Rejoice in being a Quiet leader

“From the start, with a quiet demeanour, Vera has provided robust input and challenge at board meetings…” and so goes my board appraisal (my first with this organisation) last week which was an excellent one, exceeding expectations. As I read the above, I wondered if there was some inference that by being of ‘quiet demeanour’, I…

Where has my mojo gone?

These past few weeks have been mentally and emotionally challenging for me. I was uncertain as to whether I should  ‘bare/ expose’ myself by sharing a personal story.     After much  contemplation and cogitation, I have concluded that life has it ups and downs and it would be inauthentic to just focus on the…