‘Tis the season to let go
The end of the year is nigh. And, perhaps coincidentally, or perhaps due to a subconscious urge I feel to take stock around this time of year, I have been feeling of late that a chapter in my life is ending. Or rather, that I am finally coming to terms with the fact that a […]
How to be a winner at the game of life
Does anyone else remember the 1980s board game “The Game of Life”? Whenever my friend Julie jokingly comments that one of us is “winning at life” (usually because we’ve done something banal yet seemingly monumental like clear an inbox or get to the bottom of the laundry basket), the song featured in the television advert […]
When the plan doesn’t come together, pivot
It is a common misconception that coaching is all about goal-setting. Put more comprehensively: helping clients figure out what they want, getting them to make an action plan with SMART goals, and then providing accountability as they implement that plan, step by step. While that’s not wrong, it’s not the whole story either. Yes, clients […]
Is it a great weight or part of the dance?
I have always collected quotations. Since I was quite young, I’ve kept a notebook of witty, uplifting or simply beautifully expressed truths I’ve heard or read; studying English Literature intensified my habit. Now, as a parent, I keep a journal for each of my children, noting down the funny, sweet and heartbreakingly wise things they […]
Are you juggling with plastic or glass? How to decide what to prioritise and what to let go
If your life were a circus act, what would it be? The ringmaster taming a lion? Knife throwing? Or maybe you sometimes want to trill, “send in the clowns!” Mine would probably be the act where a woman walks across a tightrope while juggling flaming skittles. It is the perfect metaphor for the challenge of […]
Don’t mistake the flowers for weeds: when a source of joy becomes a source of stress
Unseasonably hot weather and a spring resolution to make better use of the garden have resulted in my husband and I enjoying our breakfast in the sunshine a lot of late. We sip our coffee while the kids run about and water the vegetable patch, and for the joy we feel in that half hour, […]
Set the bar low to get things done
If you want to make things happen in your life, set the bar low. That’s my advice. While you should definitely define your goals based on the kind of motivational posters that have text-against-sunset images exhorting you to dream big and reach for the stars, when you’re hatching the real-world, day-to-day plan for how actually […]
Three remedies for broken resolutions
Be honest. As we enter the second half of January, how many of your new year’s resolutions are still going strong? Reported statistics vary, but according to a recent study by Columbia University, while nearly half of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, when January ends, only about 25% are still committed to them. I read […]
You are enough: when it’s time to say no to self-improvement
It may seem at best counter-intuitive and at worst blasphemous for a coach to say this, but lately I’ve been pondering question of whether, at some point, we should say enough is enough when it comes to self-improvement and personal development. I’m surely thinking these subversive thoughts in part because the end of the year […]
Focus on the how: setting New Year’s Intentions
If I read the phrase “these uncertain times” one more time, I will not be held accountable for my actions. It’s flat, hackneyed, over-used – and I’m sure I’m guilty of having written it myself. That said, it is a fairly accurate description of our current situation. While I don’t believe we live in a […]