Wise Wednesdays

It’s a long one. Last week, I gave a talk for a group of bright and inspired surgeons at Oxford University I was invited to by a great friend. The topic I was asked to present on was how to keep surgery on the global health agenda.  I wasn’t sure about it, as my commitment is to coaching and I haven’t been doing much public health in the conventional sense but I was excited to try and bring the two together for the group. One thing that bothered me was that I wasn’t introduced under my current role as an independent professional and Transformational Coach and Consultant but under my old public health titles, which reminded me that I was back in a system of acquired accolades and status... When I had finished explaining what it had taken me to achieve the things I did in my career, I felt that the group was somewhat deflated…  I was curious as to whether I had missed the mark… Initially, I went into rescuer mode trying to encourage them and make th...

A friend tried to persuade me to join the Landmark Forum – again. If you’ve never heard of it, it’s a slightly controversial, group coaching organisation.   The first time he invited me in 2012, I went along to the introductory evening in the spirit of curiosity. I left quite convinced that it wasn’t for me. So I declined subsequent invitations on the understanding that it was nothing personal.   Until yesterday…when I experienced his invitation as shaming.   And I have a problem with shame. It reminded me of the times someone tried to force me to do something (or buy something) that I didn’t really want. What do I mean by that? Essentially, the experience of being told that there is something not OK with me/my life when I haven’t asked for their opinion [and the person giving me their unsolicited opinion telling me that they can help me fix it if I would just do what they say or buy the thing they’re selling]. This can happen at indivi...

It's WISE WEDNESDAYS! “I’m so glad you’re not getting me to do that goal-setting stuff.” I hear this sometimes from people who are interested in Transformational Coaching with me. And they’re right to think along those lines. If you’re a doer or high achievers by societal standards, the thought of more goals is sometimes just tiring. Besides: “Goals are a place to come from rather than a place to get to” Rich Litvin. Whether it’s revising for exams, delivering a project or living my life, I’ve tended to follow a more intuitive approach than a rational one. It may be a personality thing or even a weakness in my approach but having seen what’s recommended in the coaching and performance literature, it’s clear that responding creatively in the moment is more effective than having a perfectly laid out plan. Photo from Huckletree I’ve never spoken in front of or coached a group where 50% of the audience is one year old, but I have to say that the energy & spont...

WISE WEDNESDAYS Last week, I attended a seminar on the future of work. The World Economic Forum, big thinkers on the subject and a good amount of evidence seem to agree that we’re entering the second machine age and automation is going to replace a lot of middle-class jobs… Which ones are going to be hollowed out? The ones with decision-making that can be done through an algorithm: medicine, the law but also banking (because of blockchain). I don’t know if or when this is all likely to happen but I know that Elon Musk, my PhD supervisor and Karl Marx have all pointed to the same thing: a world where machines do the work and we are paid a living wage to flourish outside the phenomenon we have come to know as “work for money to consume”. What’s also becoming clear is that rational thinking (which by definition can be simulated by an algorithm) will no longer be as prized. Gone will be the high status of the “expert” to make way for something far more d...