Sladen Consulting

One of our favourite festive visuals is making an appearance today!  Rebelliousness is one of our five Guiding Beliefs, and we invite you to reflect that a touch of rebelliousness can be a game-changer, especially in the workplace (and for this turkey!). Recognising that when we challenge the status quo, question the norms, and push boundaries, we pave the way for fresh perspectives and ground- breaking ideas. Rebelliousness isn't about causing chaos; it's about daring to explore beyond the lines drawn by tradition. Empower individuals in your team to use their energy and passion to challenge conventional thinking, disrupt routines, and advocate for change. Because it's these rebels who will lead you towards exciting new horizons in 2025 and beyond. From daring to speak up in meetings with unconventional ideas to reimagining processes that may seem set in stone, rebelliousness fuels a culture of creativity and progress. It's the catalyst that transforms "we've always done it this way" into "let's explore new possibilities”.  Festive cheers to the Rebels among us; those who question, who challenge, who defy the ordinary, who dare to let the turkey out.  What are your thoughts on rebelliousness at work? Share your experiences and let's celebrate the power of thinking differently! #sladenconsulting #leadership #rebellious 

Happy first Friday of December!    On the subject of being creative with gifts, why not give the gift of ‘time’ this Christmas? One of the most sustainable and impactful gifts that you could give.   This can often mean more than a physical gift. It could be time off, or a late start or an early finish, or time to focus on personal development which may have been neglected during the year. It could be some of your own time. It could be time during a team meeting to celebrate contributions during the year, rather than the expected agenda. Be creative, and take some time to really think about who in your team might appreciate more of your time, or some time to themselves. It won’t go unnoticed. Time well spent.   #sladenconsulting #leadership #time

Happy Friday! We’re getting into the festive spirit here in Sladen Land after our trip to the Christmas Market last week!    And we wondered if you would you like the chance to win a Christmas gift for your team?   Some of our followers here will know that Skill Bites can form part of our cocktail of solutions that we provide for clients – depending on their needs.   We are considering some new Skill Bite topics to develop in 2025, and would like your ideas for new topics that we should consider as part of our discussions.   The link to our current Skill Bite menu is in comments, so please have a look to find out more, and think about what we are missing!   To enter please put your new topic idea in comments, or send a message directly to Sonja Skopp or Richard Colley   We will then draw one entrant from ‘the hat’ on Wednesday next week, and will arrange for that lucky winner to receive one free virtual 90-minute Skill Bite delivery for up to 15 members of their team!   We can’t wait to hear your thoughts. #sladenconsulting #leadership #skillbites

This week the Sladen Board and ONEHub have been together for our final Hub Huddle LIVE of 2024, which was led by our very own Karina Leyser Cordeiro with sessions run by Iris Birnkammer and Sue Firth. It was great for us all to experience and benefit from some of the facilitation techniques experienced by our clients.  The theme of deepening connections and refining processes were the focus, alongside the usual fun! We spent time discovering our ‘Working Genius’ (Patrick Lencioni) to help us understand what makes each team member thrive (and what frustrates us). This was enlightening for us all and a powerful session. The snow arrived in time for our team visit to the Chatsworth Christmas Market following which we enjoyed a fabulous festive meal together - it’s never too early! These face-to-face workshops are always valuable to us.  Being together is rare for this incredibly talented team but we prioritise it at least 3 times a year as we know what a difference it makes. How are you spending time with your team to round off the year? #sladenconsulting #leadership #highperformingteam

CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE 'Today is a great day!!', says our founder Richard Colley: 'Let me explain. The photo is me now.    I've always had problems with my eyes. I've had retina problems. I've had macular hole surgery on both eyes. I've had to lie prone for two lots of five days, face down, not moving, and I've recently undergone two cataract operations. And today, I'm going back in to have one of those cataracts tweaked because it didn't work the first time.    I guess when I knew that I had to go back to have my cataract sorted I was annoyed. I was slightly grumpy. Why me?    But I've chosen today to turn my mindset into a really positive one. I am really lucky. Here in the UK we are blessed with these amazing, dedicated, brilliant and caring professionals in the NHS, and I am desperately grateful for their care, attention and service.   The whole process could have been so much more miserable if I hadn’t made the decision to change my mindset. It’s not always easy but these tips helped me to ‘flick a switch’.   1. Adopt a positive mindset and focus on the things you are grateful for, rather than dwelling on the difficulties. 2. Appreciate the dedication, care and commitment of those around you. 3. Recognize that you are fortunate to have what you have, even if the journey is challenging. 4. Maintain a spirit of resilience and determination to overcome the obstacles you face.'   What are your tips?   #Positivity #Appreciation #Positvitivemindset

Do you ever have periods at work where there don't seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything that needs doing done? Keeping all the balls in the air, jumping from meeting to meeting, and constantly shifting priorities can be exhilarating but draining. While thinking on this our one and only Sue Firth found this photo and it spoke to her: 'Not only is it quite a beautiful and calming photo to look at but it reminded me of why we need to stop and reflect sometimes. While we are in the midst of the maelstrom and that white water is raging all around us, it is difficult to see the rainbow. This rainbow is all the things we are achieving and learning as we ride that wave, but we can only see it if we take the time, when we reach calmer waters, to stop, zoom out and reflect. To look back at all we have accomplished and to learn from both our mistakes and our triumphs.' These rainbows help us learn and grow but only if we take the time to see and appreciate them. So please take that moment, grab a cuppa and marvel at your rainbow - what is yours telling you today? 🌈 #leadershipdevelopment #sladenconsulting #reflections

As a UK/German based company, having a cup of tea is very much in our DNA and the making of tea can be quite an art. The amount of time you leave the teabag in the cup can change a tea from lovely to bitter. The same holds true for thoughts that are initially exciting and interesting but can get burdensome and exhausting when we mull them over for too long. Deliberation is an admirable and essential leadership quality but too much of it can create stress for the individual, bottlenecks for the team and can lead to a lack of decision making and acting. While there are different types of overthinking, overanalyzing is the one we hear about most in our coaching sessions, which is not surprising given the complexity and amount of information leaders face every day. Here are our top 3 tips to get out of an unproductive mental loop:  ☕ Take action towards a single next step rather than trying to project months or years into the future.  ☕ Right-size the topic: assess what goals, priorities, or people in your life will be impacted.  ☕ Leverage the underestimated power of intuition and listen more to what your gut tells you. Do you sometimes find yourself trapped in your own head? What are your top tips to stop overthinking and get into action? Please share them with us in the comments! Thanks for this wonderful Friday post action Iris Birnkammer!   #leadershipdevelopment #overthinking #Fridaythoughts #sladenconsulting

Happy Friday! And happy holiday to the wonderful Sonja Skopp.   This week Sonja has taken time out of her holiday to share her reflections on shallow work and deep work.   How does this principle land with you? What tips can you share to improve our deep work practice?   #sladenconsulting #leadership #deepwork 

Happy Friday! Thankfully Richard Colley survived the storm we saw approaching in his last video…and he has now popped up in a second hand shop in Germany! Find out what his insights are in this short video. What helps you to flex your leadership style? #sladenconsulting #leadership #persona #flex

We are recruiting!   Are you a brilliant Project Manager looking for a fabulous new opportunity to use your existing skills and develop new ones? Or do you know someone who needs to see this post?!   Here at Sladen we are looking for an experienced Project Manager to join our talented team…who wouldn’t want to be part of the Sladen Family?   In comments you will see a link to the vacancy on our website. Can the combined power of our network on LinkedIn help us?    #sladenconsulting #leadershipdevelopment #projectmanager #recruiting   (The photo here shows some of our team this summer at a 1920s/ Speakeasy team celebration – come and join the party!)