Colin Gautrey

Taking Responsibility for Leading a New Team

by

When you are taking over responsibility for a new team can be an exciting time. The opportunity to innovate, refresh and transform the performance, while also adding to your credibility as a leader, and preparing you for greater things to come.

It is also a time fraught with risks and dangers that could overwhelm you and actually damage your career prospects.

It will pay dividends if you invest some time now to maximise the opportunity ad minimise the risks. Read More

Looking at Your Boots: Influencing Mistake No. 2

by

Can you imagine going for a hike on the fells or moors and spending the day just looking at the ground in front of you? Not only would you get lost pretty quickly, but it would also be very tiring and boring at the same time.  Yet this is exactly what many people are doing when it comes to influence. In fact, it ranks number one in my catalogue of common mistakes. This is easy to explain when you consider that:
  • Most people arrive at their job as an influencer from a background in task execution rather than strategy. They are more accustomed to following processes, completing actions and delivering outcomes.
  • Influence usually happens in the grey zone between black and white. It is difficult to understand what really needs to happen and hence, many people shy away from it and stick with the tangible.
  • Not only is the influence zone difficult to understand, it is forever changing. What was true (or likely) today may be completely false tomorrow; and the change is even harder to notice.
  • Many people don't know the difference between strategies and tactics, let alone the benefits of strategizing.
Read More

Five Reasons Why You Should Use More Force

by

Influence by force is common, especially in the workplace. You may be thinking that it is odious and should not form a part of your influencing approach. Yet, used in the right way, and in the right circumstances, it can dramatically accelerate your progress. The purpose of this article is to make you stop and think for a moment. I'd like you to recognise the potential, think about the pros and cons, and then learn how to make careful and shrewd choices about your choice of influencing tactic. Let's start with the reasons why you should at least consider Read More

How to be More Interesting at Work

by

It has to be said that I quite enjoyed writing and publishing the last article, Are You Boring People at Work? I hope you weren’t offended by the last sentence! The main point is that it is very much to your advantage if other people find you interesting. There are many ways to achieve this, and here I want to share some positive ways to become more interesting and engaging. Make sure and read to the end, because there are also a few warnings that I need to share with you before Read More

Turning an Adversary into a Raving Fan

by

Nita (a coaching client) had just finished an adversarial meeting with an important stakeholder (let's call her Sonja). It had not gone well, and Nita was angry and frustrated by the objections Sonja was throwing at her. After letting the feelings flow for a few minutes while the story was tumbling out, I interrupted Nita by saying that I thought she was wrong. "From what you are saying, it seems to me that Sonja is just trying her hardest to do a good job and achieve her objectives, and you are simply frustrating her efforts." That was all I said, and we moved on to other topics. Two months later, without Read More

Influence Coaching: Final Thoughts

by

As these series of articles has progressed, I hope you have been growing in confidence in the realm of influence coaching. Personally, I think there are huge opportunities in this topic, regardless of your experience as a coach (or trainer), and I trust that I have been able to show you that it is not as difficult as it may appear to get moving as an influence coach. I also hope that this is just the end of the introductory chapter for you, and for us. There is an awful lot more I could have said, and will say, if you continue to stay tuned. So, at the close of this chapter of our development, I'd like to share  Read More

Influence Coach Reference Guide

by

As an influence coach, I know you'll be busy and have challenges keeping track of all the resources you need to use. So, here's a summary page of all the articles in this series, and also a list of the various products and resources that you can use with your coaching on influence. Needless to say, let us know if you need any further help or guidance on any of this.

Series Articles

These articles won't teach you how to coach, but they will share with you stimulating ideas, principles and best practice if you are coaching people to influence. Read More

Influence Coaching Trap #3: Earning Your Crust

by

This particular risk, associated with the work of an influence coach, is more likely to occur if you are really good at your job. The more you help your client, the more value you add, the more likely you will find yourself wondering if you have actually earned your fee. Sadly, the buyer and the client may also be wondering that. Influence Coaching Trap #3 is: Read More

Are You Boring People at Work?

by

Have you ever stopped to wonder about the extent to which you may be boring those around you? The clues will be there. You may have that nagging feeling at the back of your mind. Are you brave enough to explore it now, just between you and me? Here are two big clues. Firstly, have you done any work on personal branding? You may have Read More

Terms and Conditions

ALL CONTENT PROVIDED ON THIS SITE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION ONLY. YOU REMAIN FULLY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ACTION YOU TAKE.

View Terms and Conditions

Footprint

We help professionals in organisations such as:

Accenture | AXA | Bank of America | Barclays | Citigroup | Clifford Chance | Credit Suisse | EDF | Ernst & Young | Fiat Chrysler | Fujitsu | GE | Goldman Sachs | GSK | IBM | Lloyds Bank | NHS | O2 | Orange | Pfizer | SAP | Shell | Tesco | UBS | Unilever | Zurich