» Hints, Tips & Techniques

Habit 1:  Don’t say “But..”, say “And..” The thing is the word “but” diminishes your previous statement; so if try telling your significant other “You look lovely BUT..”  I advise you to stand back having lighten the blue touch paper!  However, if you say when you say “And..” it builds on their point and having […][...] read more » 5 habits of effective communicators

When communicating be:- Clear Concise Concrete – include all pertinent facts included and avoid distracting asides Correct – not only facts, but it is good to avoid spelling and grammatical mistakes (and I should know!) Coherent – can your reader easily follow your flow? Complete Courteous[...] read more » Effective communicators are like sailors… they never forget the 7 C’s

Arguments aren’t good, but we are all occasionally confronted with situations where we want / need to win.  Here are a few tips to help you:- 1.  Confidence: as I have mentioned many times here before, performing with confidence is key to success and especially in an argument.  If you look, sound and feel confident, […][...] read more » 9 Ways to win an argument

We all occasionally need to have difficult conversations, be they at work or at home, and as we know or fear that they will be ‘difficult’ we tend to brace and tense ourselves up against the anticipated backdraft.  This is always a bad way to begin, so this is the third in this small series […][...] read more » Successfully start difficult conversations – 3

We all occasionally need to have difficult conversations, be they at work or at home, and as we know or fear that they will be ‘difficult’ we tend to brace and tense ourselves up against the anticipated backdraft.  This is always a bad way to begin, so this is the second in this small series […][...] read more » Successfully start difficult conversations – 2

We all occasionally need to have difficult conversations, be they at work or at home, and as we know or fear that they will be ‘difficult’ we tend to brace and tense ourselves up against the anticipated backdraft.  This is always a bad way to begin, so this is the first in a small series […][...] read more » Successfully start difficult conversations – 1

Author Ramit Sethi has developed something he calls “The Seagull Theory.”  It is a useful little device to remind you to pay attention.  In the olden times, sailors would pay attention to the seabirds they saw and would know if they spotted certain birds, such as seagulls, then they were getting close to land.  One […][...] read more » Seagulls

There is an aikido adage,”Perform with confidence” which basically reminds us to go for it without holding back, as it is much safer.  If you watch rugby, you will see players fling themselves headfirst (quite literally) into situations which common sense would never let you do, and they (mostly) seem to suffer little harm!  You […][...] read more » Confidence–the miracle additive

I came across this in the paper the other day and was amused by it, but reflected that it contained more than a grain of truth.  I was talking to a fellow coach about it and it was interesting to explore the nuances of communication that are landmines waiting to blow the legs of the […][...] read more » Communication- it’s tougher than you think

It is an oft repeated business aphorism that “The customer is always right!”  My father who was a salesman liked to say “The customer might not always be always right, BUT he is always the customer!”  A variant on this is “The customer might not always be right but he is never wrong!”  Good companies, […][...] read more » Three lessons in how to handle a disappointed customer or how to win arguments and friends