This weekend, my husband, son, and I went to Burgh Island for a little family getaway. The weather was great, the views were stunning, and the scones were everything I’d hoped for. And yet, within two hours, we were driving each other quietly mad. My husband wanted to...

“You’re not listening to me!” That’s what my 13-year-old son muttered under his breath yesterday. And the truth is... he was right. Despite over 20 years of coaching others and teaching others how to coach, where listening is a core skill, in that moment – I wasn’t...

As an external consultant, I often get brought in to resolve workplace tension. And more often than not, leaders assume the issue is about communication, prioritisation, or process. But the truth is, it’s almost never about that. Here’s a recent example. The Surface...

Okay, the title is a little misleading. Of course soft skills training works—if it didn’t, I’d be out of a job! But here’s the problem: it’s often treated like a last resort. A desperate attempt to fix a team that’s already in free fall. By the time a course is...

Last week, something surprising happened: my walk-obsessed dog refused to go for a walk. Cookie, my chocolate Labrador, usually sprints to the door the second I touch her lead, tail wagging like a metronome on overdrive. But this time? Nope. She flopped to the floor...

Yesterday, while heavy rain was battering at my windows, and the wind was howling through the cracks, I did what any sensible person would do—scrolled through social media. The first thing I saw? My friend’s bronzed toes, dangling over the edge of an infinity pool,...

Last week, I was at a dinner party when one of the guests—a friend of a friend—started sharing a story about their recent promotion. They spoke with such ease and self-assurance, casually throwing in details about their new responsibilities and the exciting challenges...

Before you panic—this isn’t that kind of article. But I do want to talk about how much we reveal about ourselves every day without even realising it. Our words, our reactions, even the way we stand in a queue—all of it gives away what’s going on beneath the surface....

One of the biggest battles my husband and I currently face is our 13-year-old son’s relentless campaign for a smartphone. His go-to argument? “Every single one of my friends has one.” Our response? The age-old parental classic: “If all your friends jumped off a cliff,...

When our son was young, my husband and I decided to do a bit of role playing. I mean role swapping. Due to circumstance and for practical reasons, we made a conscious decision to swap our ‘roles’ so my husband became the stay-at-home dad while I ramped up my career as...