Leadership Lounge

It should be simple to talk to someone honestly about an issue but so many leaders find it hard. Radical Candor means ‘caring personally while challenging directly’. Colin Tapscott and Anna Hennell James explore what it is and simple ways to do it and structure the conversation. Your critical conversations could be transformed.

As leaders, one of our aims is to bring our organisation to achieve high performance. Countless books have been written on it, on how to aim high and achieve it and ensure your team is a well oiled machine to constantly achieve high performance. But if we distil it all down, what is high performance and how do we achieve and maintain it? This month we invite Hayley Partridge and James Pointon, from Higher Performance Marketing, to discuss these questions and more. Hayley is a Multi-business owner, qualified therapist, and business coach and mentor for female entrepreneurs. James spent over three decades in sales and marketing, and built and sold a multi-million pound IT business in 2019.

We first met James & Hayley at Stowmarket Chamber of Commerce networking events and just recently they have been the success behind the new Everyday Leader website. In talking to them, it was obvious to me that they would be great guests on the podcast and particularly to discuss the topic of ‘High Performance’. So, we are delighted to welcome them both to the Leadership Lounge.

We need to be wise people and wise leaders. But what is wisdom? The dictionary says that ‘wisdom is the ability to apply accumulated knowledge, deep insight, and life experience to make sound judgments’, but what helps us evaluate wisdom amongst the noise of our own experiential confidence and our ego? Jane Lovett is Colin’s guest and they unpick how good counsel, seeking out discomfort and challenge, emotional intelligence and even our own bodies can contribute to inner wisdom. Join us to discover how to be part of a journey of wisdom.

Most leaders say they want engaged teams. But very few ask the deeper question: what creates engagement?

It’s not pizza Fridays.

It’s not staff surveys.

And it’s not motivational posters.

Engagement is something much more human.

You hear it said, “I have Imposter Syndrome.” You may even feel it yourself at times. Colin & Anna explore whether the SYNDROME actually exists. What if there was a different way of viewing it?

Content warning:

Laura shares honestly and openly about her significant mental health struggles, including being sectioned. Some listeners/viewers may find the content hard. Please watch/listen only if you are in a healthy space to consider mental health issues.

Laura Baines is the founder of Embrace Forever Flowers. I met Laura at a networking event, and I was struck by her story and the power of how she used her personal story which included huge challenges with mental and physical health to shape her company and shape and make a difference to the lives of others. 

Laura’s story helps us understand that struggles with mental health need not hold us back. Her story also helps us understand how you can model ‘Everyday Alchemy’ and ‘Transform Trash into Treasure’. 

We explore topics like

Here we are in podcast 5 of 5 in the Everyday Alchemy series. We have learnt how to Pause, Reflect and Respong in the moment to make the best of the moment. We have learnt how to ReVISIT, ReVIEW, ReFRAME and ReBUILD aftwerwards to develop ourselves and our practice. But so what? Is it all just about bettering ourselves?In the fifth of our ‘Everyday Alchemy’ series of podcasts, Anna Hennell James interviews Colin Tapscott about his book Everyday Alchemy and this episode focuses on ‘Treasure’. We explore the Zulu phrase, ‘Ubuntu’ and the Japanese phrase ‘Ikagai’ to see how the Everyday Alchemist truly ‘transforms’ even beyond themselves and impacts on others. How we move from being an apprentice to truly being and Everyday Alchemist.

The ancient Alchemists transformed metal into gold. They changed its form. Everyday Alchemists look to take moments beyond their current form into a better way for the future. After the moment they have ReVISITed and ReVIEWed and now it is time to ReFRAME it and ReBUILD.

In the fourth of our ‘Everyday Alchemy’ series of podcasts, Anna Hennell James interviews Colin Tapscott about his book Everyday Alchemy and this episode focuses on how to ReFRAME, understand what a better way could look like and what you are in control of developing in your skills, knowledge or practice and ReBUILD helps you work out what you take forward in your mindset or actions based on the 4P’s of Priority, Power, Partner and Plan.

Often our thinking can be unhelpful. We can tell ourselves something went wrong because it was our fault. Everyday Alchemy helps us move away from that thinking of binary pass or fail to seeing every moment as potential for learning and growth. After an event, taking time to revisit it and reflect on it, can enable us to see it more clearly and focus on the things we can control and change for the future.

In the third of our ‘Everyday Alchemy’ series of podcasts, Anna Hennell James interviews Colin Tapscott about his book Everyday Alchemy and this episode focuses on ReVISIT and ReVIEW.

These are the first two steps to explore and moment and get a clearer picture. ReVISITing it to understand elements you didn’t see at the time that impacted on the situation. ReVIEWing it allows you to gain a clearer picture of the areas you could affect change in. This helps you gain control and consider how you could turn a moment you previously viewed as trash into the treasure of learning and growth.

So often we react to situations. We can then find ourselves in a position where the situation controls us rather than us controlling the situation. Reacting and letting the situation control us can lead to us feeling out of control and anxious. Everyday Alchemy has a different approach to make the best of any sitatuion in the moment. Rather than ReACT we can Respond, using 3 simple steps: Pause; Reflect; Respond.

In the second of our ‘Everyday Alchemy’ series of podcasts, Anna Hennell James interviews colin Tapscott about his book Everyday Alchemy and this episode focuses on how to make the best of any moment using Pause, Reflect and Respond. In doing so, you can turn what might seem like trash into treasure.

Life doesn’t have to be pass or fail. It can be so much more fulfilling if you have a reflective mindset. Anna Hennell James interviews Colin Tapscott about his new book, Everyday Alchemy - Turning your Trash into Treasure, which explores how you can thrive even from the most difficult moments. In this episode Colin explains what an Everyday Alchemist is, the mindset you need and the power of reflection.

It’s just banter. No harm done.” It’s what they say when they have been held to account for comments made in the workplace, that they say is humour but actually are not funny at all. So, what is banter and what is its impact? Is there any place for it in the workplace? How do we create a healthy culture where the negative effects of banter cannot take place? How do we deal with banter as leaders and set a culture of lifting others up? Anna Hennell James and Colin explore ‘Banter’.

How to delegate well is a key component of leadership. But yet, so often delegation doesn’t go well and can lose its way with deadlines missed and outcomes that don’t match expectation, causing the leader to utter those immortal words, “I might as well do it myself!” But there is a better way.

Delegation is not just about giving someone a job to do. Delegation is the act of giving someone else the responsibility and transferring authority. In this podcast, Colin Tapscott and Anna Hennell James explore how delegation therefore needs to be planned, purposeful and strategic. When delegating leaders need to think about skill strength, development opportunities and organisational capacity. They look at the 6W’s in delegating and clear time planning with review points and buffer zones and how to ensure that the person is clear on expectations.

If you want to know in simple terms how to make delegation successful, then join us in the Leadership Lounge to hear how.

s leading all about the badge that you wear? But what if you haven’t been given a badge yet that says leader? Can you still lead?

Colin Tapscott and Anna Hennell James believe you can lead without a badge and they discuss what this looks like. Leadership is rooted in purpose and a sense of presence that comes from that. You start being a leader when you lead yourself and then you can lead others with presence. Tune in to hear more how you generate purpose and presence and can lead without the badge.

What do you think of kindness? How important is it to have in our organisations and what should it look like? Our interview in the Leadership Lounge is with Rachael Wyartt, Director and Co-founder of Kiltti, a training, coaching & consultancy business where kindness and consideration is at the heart of everything. Colin Tapscott explores with Rachael how kindness is much stronger than you think, brings clarity and boundaries and can have an impact on you, those you work with and your organisation.

They explore how self-compassion and self-acceptance helps us accept our whole self which can be helpful in then accepting and loving others with their rough and smooth. This doesn’t mean that kindness means accepting things that are not ok. Kindness means we communicate with clarity and with a core driver of person centred and improving things.

This podcast will help you reassess kindness and the power it can have.

In leadership and life we are often taught to evaluate, strategise and plan. These can indeed be important for us as leaders. Life and leadership though does not always go to plan and the unexpected can happen. Colin interviews Alex Menhams about ‘Improv’ as he is a Trainer, Speaker and Improviser who runs the ‘Here & Now People’ Improvisation Community. So Alex has the perspective of ‘Improv’ to help us not fear the unexpected moments but in fact to engage in them in the moment.

What is the power of being people centred in our organisations? If we really support and develop our people can it also help us to raise standards in our organisation?Joining me today, we have Colette Firth - Executive Head; Ross Colley, Head of school at Winyates, Alice Braxton, teacher at St Johns and Connor Knowling, Head of school one day a week, an assistant head and a class teacher to have real life conversation about Creating a People Centred Culture. We will look at what they are doing well and areas they still want to work on and from that unpick what helps us to invest in people and create a people centred culture.

We often find ourselves in moments of transition. Moments of moving from one thing to another, whether that is a new job, a new moment in life, a new approach at work or a new way of doing something. The moment when we process this transition is the threshold. Thresholds can feel scary, but Trevor in his new book ‘The Gift Of Thresholds: Flourishing Through Challenging Transitions’ helps us see the beauty and opportunity that thresholds can offer us.

Creating a high performing team is what every leader dreams of to accomplish their vision for their organisation. Key to this is both growing and nurturing talent and getting the best from everyone so that the team is greater than the sum of its parts.

So, today in our podcast Colin Tapscott will explore with Ashley Bowdler, Managing Director at FORCE Business Development, how do you grow and manage talent in individuals. They also discuss when you bring that talent together, how you ensure the dynamics bring the best out of individuals and the team.

We will also explore how you cultivate a continuous learning culture that is the seedbed for growing staff and empowering the team.

Our topic today is ‘Mastering the minimum’. As a leader, we are encouraged to ‘paint the picture of the future, go there and people will follow’ as Seth Godin put it. We are the artists of the culture we want to create. In reality, we know that painting the picture we want established is not always followed. People have their own ideas and standards that are different to ours. Therefore, as a leader, establishing the parameters, ensuring the minimum standards are met are key to maintaining the culture.

Nobody likes to get it wrong and so sometimes we like to reduce the risk to make no chance of failure. But this can then lead to risk reduction ruling us and stifling innovation. Colin speaks to Adam Golding, who is General Manager at Electroglass, & soon to be Chairman of the Charity Sizewell Hall, to explore how we can get the balance to ensure successful change and innovation.

We explore ‘risk reduction’, thinking ahead of what could go wrong and reducing the risk of it happening, and ‘risk management’, working out how you will deal with it if it arises. We distil the important components to help you rule the risk, rather than the risk rule you in both leading change and in your personal life. 

Adam Golding started out in Engineering & Manufacturing making specialist equipment for the live entertainment industry working up from the shop floor to Managing Director, whilst involved with the growing and merging of various companies before the whole Group was purchased by an American company & he became Operations Director. Covid saw an opportunity to change industries during the downturn and he was invited to help grow a Printing Company before then being Head Hunted to his current role in the Glass container industry.

Join us in the Leadership Lounge to discover more about ‘Ruling Risk’.

Any leader knows that successfully leading your team is key to success and taking people with you. Leading a team well does not happen by accident. It must be purposeful and responsive. This month’s guest is Dawn Jarvis, Managing Director of Stellar Leadership Group, author of Leading Corporate Clans, and she explains key components for leading your team well. Using the core components of the Stellar Model, Dawn helps us see what can transform your leadership of your team.

Beyond the purpose and values that drive the organisation, what else helps you ensure you have a culture that helps the organisation and the people thrive? Colin Tapscott and Anna Hennell James interview Nick Osborne who is the CEO of Maritime Academy Trust to explore how you create a strong culture. Psychological safety is a key part of that and Nick explains practical steps he takes to create that, how he develops leadership throughout the organisation and what authentic steps help create alignment from all parties. Tune in this month to help you develop your organisational culture.

Even an experienced leader can find it hard to have a challenging conversation with someone. We like to get on with people and so having a difficult conversation with a colleague or your line manager about something that isn’t working or talking to a colleague about a performance issue, can feel like a binary pass/fail moment and therefore unsettling.

But what if there was a different way of having this conversation that was more about collaboration than confrontation? Could this boost our confidence?

In this podcast Colin Tapscott and Anna Hennell James explore how this issue starts with our own internal storyline and how we can change this so we feel more confident going into the conversation with our purpose for the conversation much clearer.

They will explore with you four ‘R’s: Realise the Reason; Recognise the issues; Reaction awareness; Raise with 4P’s that will help you grow in confidence for this conversation.

‘Improvement’. It’s a key element of leadership, leading yourself and leading others. Leading involves telling a story, of a journey from here to there. We are here and we need to be there. We need to move forward, to improve. It starts before that though, in us as leaders, being personification of the change that we want to encourage others to make.

So, how do we plan for improvement that engages others? What are the key elements we need?

In this podcast, Colin Tapscott and Anna Hennell James explore the key elements for planning improvement and look particularly and the 7I’s of Kaisen to help us improve things and engage others for greater success.

Jamie is the Managing Director of STC Teamwear. STC is a custom sportswear and off-field clothing company where the clothing is designed and made in the UK. Operating since 2003, they work with grassroots to national division sports teams, academies and organisations, schools, colleges and universities across the UK, Europe and as far as the USA and Africa. In this Leadership Lounge interview, we explore Jamie’s experience and how he made choices to establish STC. We explore his experience of leading a team of people and how he uses his rugby coaching experience to empower his team. Tune in to hear down to earth practical advice.

David Dodds is a Managing Director of Sackers, a leading scrap metal and waste disposal company. David and Colin Tapscott met at a Suffolk Chamber event, and he was struck by David’s story. David has been in the scrap & recycling industry for 40 years rising through the ranks of his organisation. We wanted members in the Leadership Lounge to hear his story and find out what David has learned from his 40 years about how to lead himself, lead others and ultimately to lead a successful organisation.

Mary Myatt is an education adviser, writer and speaker. She curates Myatt & Co where she works with colleagues to develop thoughtful work on the curriculum and wider school improvement. She trained as an RE teacher and is a former local authority adviser and inspector. Drawing on her work with pupils, teachers and leaders she writes and speaks about learning, leadership and the curriculum. Join us as we chat to Mary Myatt about her story, her philosophy and her top leadership tips. It is full of rich wisdom, whichever sector you may work in, there is a lot to learn from Mary.

One of the most important things that we do as a leader is pull our team together. A good team working with you can be incredibly powerful, but how do you establish a team? How do you choose the right people and grow them to be a high performing team? One of the teams that we have had the privilege of working with at Everyday Leader is the team at Dale Hall. It’s a team with a shared purpose and so join us in the Leadership Lounge to hear all about how they went about ‘Creating a team’.

With 33 years of experience empowering pupils and staff, Lizzie Girling is the perfect guest to join our discussion on 'Empowerment'. 

Join us as Lizzie and Colin discuss how to empower yourself & your team, and all that this effort entails

Our guest is none other than Kate Kelly! With years of experience supporting businesses, Kate is the perfect guest to explore Supportive Systems. Join us on the Leadership Lounge. 

Whether it’s a new project or a new organisation, starting from scratch can feel quite ominous. But there are some simple steps you can take to make the new venture a success. Join Colin as he interviews Richard Dedicoat the headteacher who is starting a new school from scratch. We will explore how the Purpose, Partners, People and Place can be pulled together to make it work.

Every leader has pressurised moments. In these moment our thinking can abandon us and so learning how to think clearly and correctly under pressure can help us manage the outcome. Vicki Gascogne Cecil joins us in the Leadership Lounge to explain how she managed her thinking in a highly pressurised moment. Colin and Vicki unpick the key things that can help each of us do the same.

Leading is all about taking people on a journey of improvement. When you build a business or establish any project of idea, it needs some core components to do that successfully. So, what are the core components of building a successful business? Colin meets Sarah Manning of Secure Stores Nationwide, who in the midst of a pandemic has established and built a successful container business. In this podcast we will explore, BUILDING BUSINESS and the core components like Purpose, Promise and Passion that help you build business or establish any project in any sector.

How do you turn your vision for something into reality? How do you keep on course with your vision when challenge comes? How do you decide whether to take a project on? Meet Heidi Franklin from Wild Play as Colin interviews her in an outside Leadership Lounge about how she turned her vision into reality and top tips we can gain from her experience.

A lot has happened over the last 18 months. Some of it feels challenging, maybe even a little bad. Some of it has created opportunities. If we just see things as a binary good or bad we can miss some important learning. This podcast, Colin gathers with two good friends to explore the last 18 months and see whether instead of seeing things through a good or bad lens whether we just explored it as a box of learning and how that helps.  

Those of a nervous disposition should know that this podcast contains the topic of ‘pants’. For some, you are now intrigued. But, if you don’t like pants talked about then please don’t listen. :)

Join us for this month's leadership lounge, where we will be discussing 'Coaching that empowers' with two guests. 

Join Steve, Joanne and Colin, this Friday, as we delve into the topic of Handling Conflict. We'll be discussing why leaders often find this a challenging task and how there may be a premise for healthy conflict.

Leading change can be a challenge but listen to our guests Chloe, Trevor and Kirstie to hear of wise ways to plan change and manage the transition for people.   https://6da8f603-44e3-45b3-b156-5aa42093ca08.filesusr.com/ugd/9bc840_cdaccb02ef2c4131a80687016f359c6b.pdf

You can have a vision for the future but the starting point for any person and any organisation is what is my identity? As a leader, who am I and what do I stand for? As and organisation, who are we and what do we offer? In this podcast Colin Tapscott explores identity with brand expert, Andy Stewart, the principle of identity and how discover it and evolve it. Join us in the Leadership Lounge.

Your character is who walks through the door when no one is looking. So having personal courage to do the right thing is a key component of a good moral character. Having interpersonal courage is all about having the tough conversations with the right attitude. Both of these areas of courage are explored with Colin and his guests in the Leadership Lounge. 

Join Tracy, Richard and Dave as we discuss 'Holding to Account'. 

Leadership is about telling the story of the future and then taking people there. One way that we can facilitate this is through working with other leaders on innovation and creativity. Join our guests Adam, Jane and Iain, as we explore how we can lead creatively.

Working with others can have immense power to help strengthen, grow and develop what you’re doing. Getting the right partner is key to that. Join colin and his guests Rae, Rachel and Owen as we explore their top tips for developing the power of partnering.

The power of praise is that recognition can engage a person in the right things, make them more productive, help them to focus on greatness and help the organisation retain staff. Vik, Tracey and Matt explore their experience of the power of praise with our host Colin Tapscott. 

Join Colin, Jo & Chloe, as we explore the Power of Purpose. 4 key things that knowing your purpose can help you develop as a person and as an organisation.

Leadership is about painting the picture of the future and taking people with you. But that doesn’t mean that you have to constantly on the go. Wise leaders know the Power of Pause. Colin & his guests unpack 6 elements of pause that empower you to REGAIN energy, focus & direction. And you get to discover the connection between a Sweaty  T-Rex and Wonder Woman. You can’t afford to miss this one.

Leaders sometimes need to be able to take bold steps. But this needs courage and vulnerability. So, what helps us to make bold steps? 

What an amazing line-up for 16th October's Leadership Lounge Podcast, 'Balance vs Burnout'. Whether it's in the car, whilst on a run or in the gym, or in the comfort of your own sofa with a cuppa; join us in the Leadership Lounge. The conversation could be a life changer.

Leadership Lounge is open for a cuppa with Rob Morris, Liz Green and Jordan Dutt as we explore the concept of ‘Ikagai’ and finding meaning in everyday life and discovering this in our leadership.

Leadership Lounge is open for a cuppa with the wonderful Dave Cornthwaite , Jacqui Frost & Sam Petersen as we discuss 'How we develop resilience in ourselves & others'. 

Colin invites Paul Wilcox, Simon Scott and Lilly Higson into the Leadership Lounge to discuss ‘what people need from their leaders’. ‬Join them to see what they explore.

Join Colin and his three guests Steve Miles, Jane Booth and Daniel Brooks in the Leadership Lounge as they discuss the first of our topics. How to inspire yourself as a leader...