Feedback conversations are powerful. They can be a wonderful or terrible experience for all parties involved. So how can we ensure we provide feedback to our colleagues and teams in a psychologically safe manner?

In the realm of our work in the health and community sector, the ability to effectively manage emotional interactions is paramount. Individuals who are skilled at managing emotional responses and fostering a positive workplace culture can be referred to as 'amygdala whisperers'. In this article I share the traits of amygdala whisperers and tips on how we can practice these skills in our workplaces.

As a leader, being able to step into the shoes of others, both individuals and well as our teams and to see things from their experience and emotional perspective is a game changer. One of the best things we can do as leaders is to intentionally cultivate compassion within our team. Here I provide some practice exercises to help you get started.

When transitioning from practitioner to leader, it helps to reflect on good leadership models and aim to emulate them.

Focusing on what we can control is crucial because it empowers us to take action and make a positive difference in our lives.

Welcome to the first instalment of my new blog series, where I reflect on the previous month and share some of the themes that are common in many workplaces, lessons learned, and what’s coming up.

To support savvy leaders and organisations to invest meaningfully in their employees’ professional development, I’ve developed a simple framework that shows how supervision can move from toxic to transformative supervision - and the incredible impact this has.

I want to take a moment to consider the theme for this year’s International Women’s Day. It’s such an important topic, and seeing it being acknowledged is great for us all.

In the realm of leadership, you’ll often come across a range of long-standing ideas and perspectives around what leadership ‘is’ or ‘should be’.

As leaders it is important to consider how we influence how others may feel. How we deliver feedback is a great place to start. When thinking of colleagues as ‘human first’, there’s a lot we can utilise to help us as leaders ensure we’re providing feedback that supports the humans we work with.

While there seems to be some merit in the recognising that ‘new year, new me’ mindsets can set us up for failure, I think it’s all in how we think about our goals as long-term direction and progress.

During the course of 2022, the focus of self-leadership has changed.

Rather than using it to adapt to the uncertain world we were dealing with, we began tentatively using self-leadership to move beyond the day to day and shape the life, career and future we long for.

It takes considerable time, thought and investment to build a healthy, above-the-line and psychologically safe workplace culture.

Last week was a fabulous week!

I had the pleasure of working with many wonderful people who were engaged and so positive about my work and I can't tell you how energising it was, not just to me but also to my team who I shared my experience with...

*Disclaimer* I'm not talking about having a blissful spa day, massage, baths and candles.

Whilst those things can be very nice, deeply replenishing and meaningful self-care is something quite different.

Self care should always be a priority.

It needs to be a proactive focus at a team and individual level, not just when an individual is getting burnt out. Self-care should also not just be a priority because of covid.

Cultivating a high-performance team through above-the-line leadership is the goal of a dedicated leader.

Once you have achieved this, how do you maintain the performance, especially as your team grows?

The workplace can often feel like a hectic and exhausting place to be, and with the line between work and home being constantly blurred, considering steps to remain resilient through your working day is critical.

There are some key tips that I carry around

The question is, what can we each to do positively impact mental health and wellbeing at a local level?

Of course, a great place to start, is to focus on ourselves.

I love good questions. They make us think, grow and learn.

Good questions invite us to go deeper, to reflect and analyse, to consider new perspectives and insights.