Being assertive at work can be really hard, and this is something many people struggle with. Our insecurities, perceived weaknesses, motivations and goals can all stop us from being assertive when we need to be. In this article, Charlotte Scott explains why we need assertiveness, what it actually is, and how to be assertive. Why […]
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Being a manager means taking on more responsibilities and also letting go of others. However, as much as we know delegation is a good thing – we still struggle to do it well. Delegation provides your team with learning opportunities, development projects, balances workload and gives room for new insights. As a manager though you […]
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This video explains how you can use the Johari Window (Created by American psychologists Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham in 1955) to coach your high performers to make new discoveries about their working practices. Using a coaching approach allows the coachee to take ownership of their own development, gaining confidence as they are empowered by […]
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One-to-ones are one of the most important ways managers can support their team members. They are an opportunity to step away from the to-do-list and think more strategically about what you’re trying to achieve, the impact the work is having and the priorities moving forward. One-to-ones provide a dedicated space for managers to help their […]
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=mc Director and L&D specialist Yvette Gyles blogs on the pros and cons of appraisals… Many of us have had to adapt to changes to hybrid or home working in the last couple of years. Whether it’s affected you directly or indirectly, our working patterns and processes have been disrupted. Add to that an increasingly […]
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I’m a resolution failure. It is highly likely you have already broken your new years resolution, along with almost everyone else. And it seems to me (admittedly from chats and straw polls, this isn’t science) that almost every year resolutions tend to be about mind, body, and not drinking the good stuff. Maybe because we make these promises […]
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What’s the Big Idea? During the 1980’s Sir John Whitmore, Timothy Gallwey and Graham Alexander created the (now world renowned) GROW coaching model. It draws on methods developed by the trio which have since been applied in a wide range of settings around the world. In this =mc Big Idea we explore how the GROW […]
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When we put together management training, we like to involve potential participants in the design. This co-creation approach has some real benefits – participants are engaged early on, and we can understand exactly what their management challenges are and ensure the training is tailored to meet their needs. We also find out what their teams […]
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7 Common problems for emerging managers – and how to overcome them Stepping into management is fantastic – sort of. A huge achievement and a massive career change, yes – but which for most of us is also pretty daunting. You’ll find plenty of blogs and articles online to help with the change, but where […]
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Welcome to the Safe Space – where managers can share their issues, and gain advice from top learning & development consultants. Here at =mc we encourage every participant we meet on our programmes to get in touch if they have specific issues they want to follow up on. From this we hear some common problems, […]
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In this video, you’re introduced to 3 key principles of effective feedback. You’re then guided through the ABCDE framework which shows you how to prepare for and get the most out of your feedback conversations. N.b. to view the captioning on this video click ‘Watch on Youtube’ If you’d like to find out more about […]
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What’s the Big Idea? If you want to have a good relationship with your colleagues, managers and leaders at work, the best thing to do is to perform your job well. But there will be times when you need to actively influence someone – to get help or resources, to get buy-in for your ideas, […]
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Winter is finally over. The days are getting longer. The trees are blossoming, bulbs are flowering and all around us birds sing hallelujah. …Not quite accurate? Are you struggling to find the joys of spring at work? Feeling a bit flat or stagnant? The last 12 months have been tough, so it is totally understandable […]
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Help! I need to manage my stakeholders and I don’t know where to start. As a project manager it’s important to know and understand who your stakeholders are and how to manage your relationships with them. People can make or break a project so handling your stakeholders well is essential. At =mc we define stakeholders […]
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It’s February. That special time of year when our resolutions are a distant memory, the decorations have all been packed up, and we’re back in the thick of things after a winter break. We’re getting busier and busier, and things are piling up. Whilst love may well be in the air for many towards the […]
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Here at =mc we encourage every participant we meet on our programmes to get in touch if they have specific issues they want to follow up on. From this we hear some common problems, issues, challenges, and worries. In this regular feature we share some of those challenges, and our advice, for dealing with them. […]
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In our coaching practice and on our personal effectiveness programmes we often help people who are getting ready for interviews. These could be interviews for new jobs, or meetings with new supporters, or pitches. Here, Yvette Gyles, =mc Director and coach explains how to prepare for such meetings with confidence. Why we need to make […]
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January is traditionally a time of looking forward and looking back. A time to consider the challenges – and failures – of the year before. To set resolutions and plan for a better year ahead. Full of good intentions, these resolutions are usually broken by the end of the month. I have never been a […]
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Learning is important because it keeps us motivated, keeps our minds active and means we are more able to manage change. Change is a constant and therefore so must be learning. And during this time of upheaval, we are needing to adapt to change quicker than ever. Suddenly there seems to be a plethora of […]
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Welcome to the Safe Space – where managers can share their issues, and gain advice from top learning & development consultants. Here at =mc we encourage every participant we meet on our programmes to get in touch if they have specific issues they want to follow up on. From this we hear some common problems, […]
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On our management programmes we regularly discuss what it means to be a great manager. When we ask people what they themselves want from their managers we continually hear the five key themes: direction, openness, modelling, trust and challenge. Direction We want our managers to provide us with a sense of direction. In order to […]
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A crucial skill we all need at work is the ability to facilitate high quality discussions and gain agreement about the way forward. Whenever you run a meeting, you can use effective facilitation to assess opportunities, solve problems, create new ideas and action plan. With a huge increase in on-line meetings, great facilitation skills are […]
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We’re delighted to share with you episode 6 from Marie Curie’s internal podcast series aptly named The L&D Podcast. In this episode, Madeleine White, Learning & Development Co-ordinator at Marie Curie interviews =mc Director Laura Slater on what it’s been like to be furloughed, and how it feels returning to work. The podcast series began […]
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In every high performing organisation you’ll find brilliant leaders, and brilliant managers. Both these roles are needed for very different reasons. Why do we need brilliant leaders? Great leaders provide us with a vision we can get behind and believe in. This whole-hearted belief is necessary for us to overcome the obstacles that will inevitably […]
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Have you been keeping an eye on culture in your team or organisation lately? Admittedly for managers and leaders, there has been a lot to think about in the past eighteen months. Shifting to home working, locking down, unlocking, risk assessments, reallocating budgets, planning ahead, supporting wellbeing, making changes, introducing new ways of working. All […]
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Welcome to the Safe Space – where managers can share their issues and gain advice from top learning & development consultants. Here at =mc, we encourage every participant we meet on our programmes to get in touch if they have specific issues they want to follow up on. From this we hear some common problems, […]
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In this article, Charlie Scott breaks down the mystery of strategy, and how to ensure your strategy is a living reality. A common mystery Chief Executives rely on their management teams to make strategy happen, from Deputy Directors, to Heads of Departments, to functional Managers, to Team Leaders. Managers need to support their teams to […]
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Last week, Matthew Sherrington wrote that managers and leaders are gaslighting their staff in the charity and not-for-profit sector by creating toxic work cultures (see Matthew’s blog here). The drive to do more, more, more – and yet never doing enough can be overwhelming as demand for services and support is endless. This is then […]
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How to ensure people learn, develop and feel invested in – no matter how small your training budget is. This time last year the CIPD released their latest learning report[1], and whilst not entirely surprising, it highlighted that charities and non-profit organisations have very tight training budgets. The Covid-19 pandemic has meant shifting resource and […]
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The challenge: The world is a mess, or rather the world feels a lot messier than it did in 2019 – largely due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic has been tough to deal with and yet deal with it still we must. It has been challenging in different ways. For some of us, working […]
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Avoiding the parenting penalty – take a flexible approach to ensure working parents and carers can be at their best. Charity and non-profit managers know that supporting working parents and carers makes sense. The majority of people working in the voluntary sector are women[1] and being a working parent or carer is on the rise […]
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Covid-19 has presented leaders with a huge amount of challenge and organisational change. Getting your teams and services functioning during lockdown alongside handling the related upheaval has not been easy or straightforward. However, as we move through June and restrictions start to ease across the UK and Europe, it would be tempting to think the […]
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Accelerate learning to help your team through the challenges Lockdown may be easing here in the UK, but things are going to be tough for a while for charities and non-profits. Some organisations have restructured their teams and services to meet emerging and emergency needs. Some people are returning from a period of furlough, into […]
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Fundraising at the moment is hard but has never been more essential. Your fundraising team might be feeling anxious, discouraged or isolated. You can help them stay engaged and motivated by taking these five steps: 1. Be available: Establish regular check-in calls to ensure your team members don’t feel isolated. Use video calls and virtual […]
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It’s a strange new reality that we’ve all been plunged into since Covid-19 reached our shores. With 14 weeks of lockdown under their belts in the UK people are starting to discover how resilient they feel. And let’s be clear about that: resilience is not something absolute, that you either are, or are not. Resilience […]
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Managing a remote team of people – who are not sitting anywhere near you and may not even be in the same time zone – can be a huge challenge. How do you make sure out of sight isn’t out of mind, especially when you might have been used to seeing at least some of […]
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We all have busy days at work. We all have bad days at work. And sometimes the pressure can be a bit too much. We asked participants at our last Managing Multiple Priorities course what they did to handle pressure and stay productive. Here are their top ten tips: 1. Be prepared Recognising that we […]
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Sound confusing?! In this short video, =mc consultant Georgina Wright explains why saying yes to everything at work doesn’t actually pay off in the long run. Consider the options, and make a conscious decision. For further tips, tools and models to help you make the most of your time, take a look at the related […]
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It is a universal truth that during our working lives, we will not always agree with our colleagues. There are always going to be times when we need to have difficult conversations or overcome tricky differences. Here is an example: Recently I had a catch up meeting for a project I’m working on. There was […]
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This video explains how the three elements of face to face communications (as researched by Albert Mehrabian) work together to deliver your message. Using a mismatch of body language and tone compared to your words can lead to your message being lost or misconstrued. Match all three to have the biggest impact. Laura Slater, =mc […]
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