The phrase square peg in a round hole is an idiom for something that does not fit.  There are many women who are living their lives as square pegs in round holes and doing jobs that are just not them. Sometimes they do not even realise that they are doing this and they continue day...Read More

“It’s not what you are that holds you back, it’s what you think you’re not.” Denis Waitley It’s finally time to tackle the last, but certainly not the least of the four energy blocks: the Gremlin, the Inner Critic, the Itty Bitty Sh*tty Committee or whatever else you want to call it. At iPEC the...Read More

People buy into people – not products. You’ll have heard this statement before and never before has it been more relevant in a society where we are bombarded by choice. You the founder of your business are the sales person, and by communicating your background, the inspiration behind your business, your driving forces, challenges and...Read More

Increasing the gender balance in the boardroom is now a well established best practice in most serious companies. There has been widespread lobbying from government and from representative groups which has focused not just on fairness but also on the wealth of untapped experience not being brought to the board table. Smart companies see it....Read More

You work hard, you’re ambitious but you’re feeling stuck and overlooked. Time to turn detective, says career coach Lucinda Harlow… I went on a murder mystery on the Orient Express this week.  It was the business. Was I the big kid with a candlestick and rope in my bag ready to fox the super-keens? Maybe....Read More

Almost a million* UK managers are working in a way they feel is unethical, according to new figures released today by CMI (Chartered Management Institute), with the need to ‘get ahead’ at work being blamed. White lies are a constant in UK workplaces with almost one in three workers (30.4%) reporting they tell at least...Read More

“Don’t mistake activity with achievement.” John Wooden An Achievement is the result of your hard work, it’s those occasions when you have gone beyond the expectations of your role. In other words you are paid to do a job but where do you add value to retain it? If you knew that at the end...Read More

By Jessica Chivers, founder of The Talent Keeper Specialists (www.talentkeepers.co.uk) and author of Mothers Work! How to Get a Grip on Guilt and Make a Smooth Return to Work (Hay House, 2011). Nicky Dulieu (CEO of Hobbs) has called on women to be more authentic at work. Market research by her business found that one...Read More

Asssumptions….The Mother of All F*@k Ups? “Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off once in a while or the light won’t come in.” Alan Alda Many personal ‘dilemmas’ that clients present to coaches can be addressed by helping the client to change the beliefs that created his or her “reality”. Last...Read More

Subtle sexism? A business man once told me (seriously) that I should “dress sexier” because “if a man doesn’t want to have sex with you, then he probably isn’t listening to you”. He genuinely believed he was giving me sound advice. Previously, a female partner at a city law firm, suggested that I didn’t “join...Read More