Training
I’m known for my relaxed, interactive, and engaging approach to training. I’m not there to put anyone on the spot, but to create a welcoming environment and to concentrate on what is practical and of interest to the group. I spend a lot of time in advance clarifying and refining the brief so that the participants get a bespoke product relevant to their business.
You will find below more details about the workshops that I offer. I can present each course on its own, or combine topics to suit you and your needs. They can be tailored to be anywhere from an hour or two, half a day or a full day. I also deliver all of them face-to-face or remotely.
Please email me for a more detailed list of workshops and their content.
Negotiation Skills
Being a skillful negotiator is a key element in delivering maximum value for an organization. This workshop helps you to understand the negotiation process, the person with whom you are negotiating, and the techniques you can use and tailor to the specific situation. It helps you to develop confidence in negotiating, practice the skills learned and get to win/win, while preserving the business relationship.
Effective Networking (especially for those who hate it)
Most people don’t like networking. Too many put themselves under enormous pressure in thinking that each bit of networking they do must quickly lead to a piece of work. But this is not realistic. Networking approached with dread and anxiety is doomed to fail. Effective networking is simply about making successful connections upon which you can build trusting relationships.
This workshop draws upon the tried-and-tested tips and techniques that take the pain out of networking, and also looks at how they translate for successful use online.
How to Give an Engaging Talk
When giving a talk to current or prospective clients you usually have two aims: first, to impart your knowledge and expertise in your specialist area; and second, to persuade them that you are someone with whom they could, and would want to, work. The former is all about content. The latter, however, often depends on how you perform. A poor or lacklustre presentation can alienate your audience and lose you potential work, no matter how knowledgeable you are in your subject.
This workshop provides participants with simple and practical tools to help them give effective and engaging talks that make a positive impact on their audience.
Pitching for Business
In these changing political, social and economic times, clients will be feeling insecure and vulnerable. They will be shopping around for value and competition for work will be fierce. Clients are interested in the people as well as the product. You need to be able to stand out from your competitors and demonstrate that you are interested in the clients and their business.
This workshop will help you to understand the pitching process, from gathering relevant information before the pitch to the presentation itself. It will help ensure that you make the right impression and increase your chances of winning the work.
Understanding and Using Emotional Intelligence (EI)
Emotionally intelligent people know how to manage themselves and get the best out of others even in the toughest situations. Understanding and using emotions in a positive way helps pave the way to successful relationships and results in the workplace.
Working in complex organisations, sometimes in difficult situations and with different people requires self-awareness so that you can manage yourself and read the emotional reactions of people around you. The challenge is to understand the difference between reaction and response, so as to master your emotional intelligence and thereby your ability to cope with demanding situations, people and cultures.
This workshop provides practical tools and techniques that will help you increase your emotional intelligence and helps you to understand why emotional intelligence is one of the most prized skills in the workplace and beyond.
Managing Conflict
Knowing how to manage conflict is a key leadership and management skill. Conflict is inevitable in human dynamics but, managed well, it can lead to longer-lasting relationships with clients, and improved productivity, engagement and motivation with your teams.
In this workshop participants learn how to deal with conflict constructively and with confidence.
Writing Effective Letters and Emails
Good writing saves time, effort and money. A poorly drafted email or letter reflects badly both on the writer and the organisation. A quick or ill-considered email can be misinterpreted as to tone or content. A hastily drafted subject line can mean the difference between an email being opened or ignored. It is critical that any writing, but particularly letters and emails, must be clear and effective and always have the reader in mind.
In an age where we may never meet the reader in person, our writing becomes our brand.
This workshop is practical, instructive and entertaining. It is intended to help people at all levels write more effectively and make good writers even better, using simple but powerful tips which they can apply immediately.
Introduction to Influencing and Persuading
Being able to influence and persuade others is key to turning ideas into action. Your ability to understand who your stakeholders are and how to get their buy-in is essential when getting them on-side. The challenge is to understand what this means and how to do this.
This workshop is engaging, practical and enlightening. Participants are encouraged to share their own experiences, in a safe and friendly space, from which all can learn.
CV Writing and Interview Skills (can also be the subject of one-to-one coaching)
As the world of work becomes even more competitive it is essential to present yourself well on paper and in an interview. But it is hard to take a step back and look at ourselves objectively. It is even harder sometimes to identify our unique selling point, or “USP”, that one thing that makes us stand out from the rest of the pack. Some feel uncomfortable about blowing their own trumpet. But if you don’t, no one else will! This course is a combination of tips and techniques covering areas including:
Layout and content of a CV
What is your USP?
Effective cover letters
Anatomy of an interview, from preparation to delivery to follow up
Delegates have the opportunity to practice their interviewing skills with each other and receive one-to-one coaching from me relating to their specific CV and interviewing style.
Introduction to Myers Briggs Personality Types
Do you often find that you are one of the few making any valuable contributions at meetings while others just sit there, apparently with nothing to say?
Does the “big picture” excite you, but often lead to a feeling of being trapped or bored by the details you overlooked?
Do you wonder why some people can never seem to make a decision, or why the first response from some people always seems to be “No”?
Are you a person who would be happy to get everybody organized, if only they’d let you?
If you have ever had any of these thoughts or observations about yourself or others with whom you work, then the understanding of personality types through the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator ® (“MBTI”) is the workshop for you!
The MBTI is one of the oldest and most respected psychometric instruments in the world. It provides a useful shortcut to helping you understand yourself and others, and self-awareness is a powerful force in the workplace. The MBTI is non-judgmental and concentrates on strengths of preferences rather than on traits or deficiencies. So, for instance, there are no “better than” or “worse than” types, or “well-adjusted/maladjusted” types. All of the 16 personality types have equal value.
This workshop is particularly effective for teams or departments to help the members understand each other and the group dynamics. It is very useful for developing leadership styles, improving communications and managing change. It is fascinating, fun and very engaging.
I also provide one-to-one MBTI sessions for individuals.