Caoching At Work
Tuesday, June 14 2005Dear friend,
I hope this finds you well. We're staying with work as our theme this week as it is clearly such an important area for so many of us.
Last week's Newsletter, Do What You Love, brought a huge response. One member emailed to say that she read it and resigned - there and then! Well, sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do. And our career coach Sue Clarke's new book Reinvent Your Career is flying out of the door. Clearly, work is not a lot of fun or fulfilment for many of us.
Here in the UK we work longer hours than anyone else in Europe, but what have we got to show for it? A bad attitude and heart disease, probably. A new survey shows that the British are unhappier in their work than any of our European neighbours (the Scandinavians are the most fulfilled).
Another study published this week from University College London, provided evidence that those in unrewarding jobs are more at risk of heart attacks than those who find their jobs exciting. Those who enjoy their jobs feel in control of their prospects and have hearts that adapt well to stress and exercise.
One of the problems I often observe is the appalling, and out-of-date, management styles in many places of work in Britain, reflected in a lack of trust and respect in an organisation. It's not unusual for me to be parachuted into a company to persuade an unhappy and vital member of staff not to leave!
Obviously, the problem is not just with one individual but with the overall culture and communication throughout the place. Coaching for individual staff members is now widespread in this country.
Whilst this can only be a good thing, I believe it is even more productive to equip people within the workplace with coaching skills, so that good communication and inspiring leadership becomes embedded in an organisation and continues long after the coaches have left. It's the old adage of giving a man fish and he'll eat today; teach him to fish and he'll eat forever.
Additionally, if we can turn managers into coaches, it can transform the workplace for everyone, not just the select individuals who enjoy their own personal coach.
With this in mind, we have created a brilliant Coaching Skills Toolkit, specifically for people to use at work. We can impart these coaching skills over a two-day workshop or fit it into a bespoke schedule that works into a company's schedule.
Francine Kaye is one of the coaches leading this new development and I'm going to hand over to her at this point. If you’d like to chat with either of us about your situation at work and how we could help, do get in touch, fiona@fionaharrold.com and francine@fionaharrold.com. Above all, for the sake of your health and happiness, ensure you enjoy work. If not, do something about it now.
