Unlocking Potential

From Forming to Performing: Leading yourself through change and challenge This is the first of four episodes where we will look at how we lead ourselves through change and challenge. This episode is for you if you have.. Just stepped up or into a role where the team has grown or is newly established Led your team through change and you've got your team in place but they are not yet performing You've led a team through growth. There are new team members or a new strategic direction This is a key moment where Tuckman's Four Stages of Group Development come in. This episode will help you reflect on which stage your team is at and how you feel about each stage. This is a moment to plan and equip yourself for what is to come so that you can effectively lead your team from forming to performing.

Are you in the right PLACE to find joy? This is the final component of the Thinking Environment: Place - producing a physical environment, the room, the listener, your body that says you matter. Where do you work? Where do you meet? Does the environment say you matter for you or for your team? What can you change or control about your working and meeting environment that will help make everybody matter? Recommended reading: The Art of Gathering, Priya Parker

Finding Joy in Asking Questions to Unblock Thinking Time to Think call the core question the Incisive Question™ Freeing the human mind of untrue assumptions lives as true. Think of an outcome you or your team would like to work towards. Then answer What are you assuming that is stopping you... (insert outcome)? What are you assuming that is most stopping you... (insert outcome)? Is it true that... (insert the thing that is most stopping you)? If it is not true that... (insert the thing that is most stopping you) then what can you credibly assume instead? If you knew that... (insert new assumption) then what first first step would you take? When we can ask questions to unblock our thinking we can moved from being fixed and defensive to being able to liberate our thinking and free our minds. This is where we find joy.  

The Joy of Information It may feel like information is a pretty dry and boring subject. But when we don't have the information we need we are not able to make decisions or think for ourselves. A lack of information excludes, reinforces hierarchy, causes frustration and anxiety. When we have the information we need we can feel more at ease. There is equality. Our ideas can flow. Yet in our workplaces we often don't have the information we need, it is supplied late or we make decisions without all the relevant facts. In this episode I explore how you can challenge where information has not been provided and provide information to others.  

Joy is a Feeling - so let's get comfortable with feelings Feelings - welcoming the release of emotion. Unexpressed feelings can inhibit good thinking. Thinking stops when we are upset. But if we express feelings just enough thinking restarts. > Which emotions are safe to express at work? > How might you talk more about how you feel and help your team to put a path forward.   Highly recommended reading on all things feelings. Brené Brown - Atlas of the Heart No Hard Feelings: Emotions at Work and How They Help Us Succeed - Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy    

The Joy of Appreciation Noticing what is good and saying it. The human mind works best in the presence of appreciation. In this episode we talk about the small moments of connection where we can appreciate not only the work someone has done or outputs but to appreciate a quality in them, or something that they did that we appreciated. That could be Helping get the room ready for the meeting. Asking a thoughtful question. Their wisdom or courage. We will also find it hard to appreciate others if we don't take time to notice what is good in our own lives. Think of a time when a quality of yours was appreciated. What impact did that have? What have you appreciated about your team this week? How can you let your team know?  

The Joy of Difference "Committing to freedom from untrue assumptions driving prejudice." How can we find joy through challenging the assumptions that keep us blocked, limited, fixed and set against anything or anyone who is different. When we challenge these assumptions we can explore and be open to new possibilities and opportunities. New ideas emerge,  It starts with us and our personal commitment to challenge ourselves. If you lead others we must choose to act and show our actions first. This starts with our choice to change and challenge our thinking.  

The Joy of Equality Ok I am going to be honest. If you are serious about creating equality there will be some discomfort first. In facing up to the fact that your meetings may not be places where there is equality. You will be able to take authentic and impactful action. Once we have faced the discomfort deep joy and connection can be found from creating spaces where everyone is equal. Spaces where we regard each other as thinking peers. In this episode we explore what meetings look like when there is not equality. What they could look like and how create equality. Spoiler alert they can be joyful, energising, refreshing and motivating - for everyone. Some questions for reflection How might people be feeling excluded in your meetings or workplace? Do you really believe everyone is equal?  What one action can you take to your next meeting ensure that everyone is equal?

Finding Joy through Encouragement The third component of a Thinking Environment talks about - giving courage to go to the unexplored edge of thinking by ceasing competition as thinkers. Where there is competition, judgement or fear of speaking up there will be no joy. There will be performance, conformity and a lack of creativity. The questions I want to leave you with are.. How can you find courage? What conditions do you need to find courage? How can you help others find courage? What conditions do they need to find courage? Learn more about Time to Think and the Thinking Environment HERE  

Welcome to the second episode of the Finding Joy Mini series. Finding Joy with Ease Ease is disregarding internal urgency. How can we find ease and what impact will that have on our team finding ease? When we are at ease we will be more present, be creative, notice what is good, connect powerfully. Ease is destroyed by our digital distraction - emails, slack, WhatsApp, social media, notifications, meetings. All of these things are valuable and can serve us we just need to be intentional about how we use them, how we work at our best and what will help us to achieve our goals. The first thing we can do is notice - where do we not feel at ease? Then ask - what will make me feel more at ease? Join me on Tuesday 2 September at 12.30pm for a lunch and learn where we will delve deeper into how we can Find Joy for Ourselves and how that will impact how we create joy for others at work.

I'm delighted to start this mini series on Finding Joy. First up ATTENTION How we give ourselves attention How we find those who will give us attention How we give others attention This is your leadership super power. A skill that we are loosing in the age of distraction, productivity and overwhelm. Even taking 90 seconds to pause will help you unlock joy for yourself and others.   "The quality of everything we do depends on the thinking we do first. The quality of our thinking depends on the attention we are given." Nancy Kline Time to Think

If the gold standard for leadership is to be inspiring how can we do that when we are feeling uninspired and unmotivated ourselves. We need to find joy, our spark, our motivation. When we find this joy will be infectious. Trying to change others behaviour alone won't get us very far. In fact often it leads to frustration. Taking time to think and pause will change how you feel. Taking time to think and pause will change how you spend your time. Taking time to think and pause will change how you show up.   One of the biggest barriers leaders face is time - I don't have time to pause. In this episode I talk to Tim Baker about how pausing and thinking transformed him from "grumpy Tim" to finding joy in his role and leading others. You will also come away with a compelling reason to pause and think. As well as gaining practical tools to help you put your thinking into action. Reading and Resources Nancy Kline - The Promise that Changes EverythingPomodoro TechniquePace and Perspective You can find out more about my Leadership Inner Circles HERE. Delve deeper - join me for a live Lunch and Learn on Tuesday 2 September where we will look at how we can Find Joy for Ourselves and others at work. Register HERE.

In this episode of the Unlocking Potential podcast we look at How to Manage Your Workload Effectively.We start by considering our pace and perspective. If we are going too fast and are not looking up and out we will not be doing the work that will have the most impact. This exercise will also help you uncover the impact of staying at your pace and perspective. We then look at the Eisenhower Matrix but check it against our pace and perspective and some of our internal assumptions that might stop us from taking meaningful action. We close with a word on delegation - why it is your most powerful took for your workload management and for your teams motivation.In June I'm running a FREE workshop called From Stuck to Soaring: Motivating Teams when targets aren't met. We will go deeper into some of these areas. You can sign up on my website emilypettytraining.com  

90 Day Goal Setting to help you make progress.This episode if for you if you find yourself Procrastinating putting off actions or activities. Unclear of where you are heading. Overly focused on reacting to urgent needs with no clear picture of what activities are helping you to get you to where you need to be. 90 Day Goal Setting is a simple, but powerful, process that will help you set the direction of travel, stay on track and have something to celebrate at the end of the 90 days.My Leadership Inner Circles are 90 days for a reason. We know that together there is a lot we can achieve when you create space to plan and find accountability.

In this episode we look at how to be less lonely at work and how to help your team feel less lonely. We look at The evidence for loneliness at work and the impact. What a connected team could look like. I share 9 ways you can create more connection at work. How we show up and connect with our team sets the tone for everyone. It does require us to put connexion and relationship building on our to do list. We need to make moments of connection and meetings matter. It is also really important not to assume that people connect and need connection in the same way as you. Ask your team what they need, try ideas out and be willing to change.   Resources and Links How to Overcome the Fear of Feedback - https://www.emilypettytraining.com/podcasts/unlocking-potential-2/episodes/2148601027 How to Make Meetings Better For Everyone - https://www.emilypettytraining.com/podcasts/unlocking-potential-2/episodes/2148562296 How Loneliness at work can impact your life - https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2024/03/21/how-workplace-loneliness-can-impact-your-job/ Better Up - Build a Culture of Connection Report - https://grow.betterup.com/resources/build-a-culture-of-connection-report. Gallup - State of the Global Workplace Report https://www.gallup.com/workplace/349484/state-of-the-global-workplace.aspx Ways I can help your team feel more connected. Team thinking sessions and workshops - cultivating ways of being together that build connection and improve thinking. Leadership Inner Circles - for leaders in your organisation or join a group of likeminded peers. Facilitated group problem solving and decision making - if you have a tough topic you can bring me in to facilitate and create a space where everybody matters.  

How to find your support network. In this episode we look at why it is so important to find your support network and to be really intentional about building connections that will help you thrive in 2025. Who to look for in your support network. What roles do you need most. How to build your support network. Some ideas for action to help you get started. I will be holding a Find your Network Event in late January/ Early February.  An opportunity for you to put some of the ideas in this podcast into action. Sign up to my weekly enewsletter to be the first to find out when it is. https://www.emilypettytraining.com/Leadership-tips Resources The Personal Board Room - https://www.personalboardroom.com/ Lean In - https://leanin.org/ Leadership Inner Circles - https://www.emilypettytraining.com/leadership-inner-circles  

Approach the end of the year with clarity and confidence. Wrap Up 2024 by looking back so you can find clarity to move forward. This podcast will help you identify what might stop you and your team from reflecting and learning from the past and why will be so impactful in helping your team build trust, grow, thrive and have effective conversations in 2025. Join me on Thursday 19 December from 12.30pm to 2pm for a Wrap Up 2024 facilitated workshop for £45 or £90 if you send three members of your team. Book your spot HERE.

Why Your Team Matters Most In this podcast I make the case for why focusing on your people, bing kind, compassionate and caring is the most effective way to lead a high performing team. I share two businesses who are thriving by putting people first. Timpson  Barry Wehmiller The challenge if you believe the case I put forward is to make three mindset shifts and uncover many more that might be stoping you from making your team matter most. The first step of course is to be kind to yourself. Oh and I include l0 actions that you can take all aligned with the 10 Components of the Thinking Environment which will help you take meaningful action today. You can download a workbook to accompany the podcast and join me live on Friday 29th November for a free workshop where I will help you make your team matter most by registering HERE   Reading Everybody Matters Bob Chapman and Raj Sisodia  Kind - Graham Allcott The Happy Index - James Timpson

In this episode we look at how to motivate your team and lets face it ourselves. When we are energised and motivated we will energise and motivate others. There will always be times of low motivation and low energy. The key is to be able to notice this, identify what causes the low motivation and find ways to move through it. I also look at how we can harness the opportunity that hybrid working brings to enable us to work with our energy and to maximise times of connection and times when we are working at home alone. Ways I can support you to motivate your team. Team motivational days to help your team connect together, listen to each other, encourage each other and find ways to stay motivated and energised together. 1-2-1 Coaching - if you are feeling low in motivation having time to think for yourself can be the most powerful first step you can take. Emily hello@emilypettyconsulting.com to book a chat. Links and resources Cornell University Research into the impact of fire fighters eating together - HERE Theory on Motivational Factors HERE

In this episode of Unlocking Potential I look at how you can think and act strategically. There are three steps that I've adapted from William Ury's book Possible. He shares these steps in relation to managing conflict but I think they also apply to strategic thinking. This podcast can apply to you personally and how you lead others strategically. I am not going to give you a formula for leading a strategic planning process. These steps need to be in place as a foundation that will support any strategic planning tool you might use. And if you want to keep things simple can provide a framework to help you be more strategic with a more human approach. 1 - Pause 2 - Zoom In 3 - Zoom Out Join a FREE live workshop on Monday 30 September where we will go deeper into the topic of How to Think and Act Strategically - join HERE I'm Emily Petty a coach, trainer and facilitator. I help senior leaders and their teams break free from overwork by helping them find a way to lead and work that feels effortless, authentic and empowering.