Everyone wants to feel successful in their lives, and that need is not always limited to work. We need to be successful at our relationships, with our partners, with our children, our families, socially and of course, at work. We all have an inherent need to be the best versions of ourselves. But did you ever consider that having a coach could be the vital key that could make that success real and achievable. What really is coaching? As per the definition of the International Coaching Federation (ICF), the global organization dedicated to advancement and training for this fast-emerging profes ..read more

Supporting the precarious Middle years. Why is Women’s Leadership even a topic of discussion? A leader is a leader, no matter what the gender. Right? Perhaps the answer is not that simple. Women as leaders are doing better than they have ever done before. While there is an Angela Merkel, there is also a Jacinda Ardern. A Indra Nooyi, a Mary Barra, a Ho Ching and a Sheryl Sandberg. A Lucy Peng and a Tan Hooi Ling. And then there is Elizabeth Holmes and Chanda Kochchar. Women leaders who exhibit the entire spectrum of leadership behaviours. We are at a unique inflexion point in history where wo ..read more

"What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything." ,- Vincent Van Gogh Vincent Van Gogh, the master of imagery and colour, became a legend only after his death, enduring a lifetime in financial distress, intense suffering and ultimately ending his life in an asylum at the age of 37. At his death, he had produced about 2000 pieces of art, having started painting only at the age of 27. We know his paintings today because of his brother, Theo and sister-in-law, Jo Van Gogh-Bonger. His life and works are an inspiration for millions around the world. Van Gogh’s life is more relevant tod ..read more

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3Cy9X-TpJk A coach’s journey invariably starts from self-improvement, a search for Self, and somewhere meanders into “purpose” and working with others to help them find a safe space to explore their best Selves. As one goes through the journey, there are always newer biases to encounter and judgments to deal with. Of one’s own. And this in turn leads to tremendous compassion for the world and for the Self. This last year I worked with some wonderful people. There were chance discoveries and we know from applied neuroscience that chance discoveries are hugely re ..read more

Image Source: Grammarly Our LinkedIn feeds are drowning us with activist slogans on empathy and inclusion at work. Some of us might even find it overdone. But what exactly is empathy? Is there a neuro-psychological explanation of what is going on in the mind and body? My one-on-one conversations with clients and professional friends reveal that “empathy” is still very much a platitude. A quick dipstick reveals that people feel pressured to hide or suppress their “empathy” in the workplace, to be viewed as “competent". Or else they find colleagues and bosses approaching empathy with caution. S ..read more

Leaders who want perfectly oiled teams often make the mistake of inferring lack of conflict as a sign of perfect alignment. The voices of dissent are the ones that make the picture messy. Leaders do not want a mess. They want the task accomplished, the work done, and the trophy won. But winning trophies is a messy job. Then the task perhaps is to create a safe space for dissent, for the uncomfortable questions. There is so much talk about psychological safety and yet people wonder how to go about creating it. Leaders would like organizational specialists to come and resolve the problem. But a ..read more

The Origin of the IKGIAI Ikigai became a hot topic after Dan Beuttner, a national geographic writer and explorer brought it to the fore with his TED talk. In his video, he talked about the secret to the longevity of people who live in ‘blue zones’ where community elders could live to a hundred years. This interesting TED talk went viral with 3.4 million views and was transcribed in 32 languages since it was first aired in 2010. Buettner did not, however, launch a new-to-the-world concept. Ikigai, as an idea, has existed in Japan for thousands of years. Ikigai translated essentially means “the ..read more