Over the weekend I puppy-sat Max, my brother’s beautiful 18-month-old labradoodle. He had asked before and I’d declined for two main reasons – I know nothing about dogs and I’m allergic to a long list of animals.

In my recent post Are you asking the right questions?, I explored different types of questions, how to ask personal questions, and why we need to ask them.

Asking questions can stimulate ideas, solve problems, develop trust and build your relationship with your team, even when working remotely. In this blog, I share my thoughts on the kinds of questions we should be asking to show support for our team members and how we can approach asking them.

I used to be a yes girl. I’d say yes to everything.

I’ve been thinking a lot about kindness lately. And how a small, kind gesture can make such a mammoth difference to someone’s life.

One of the biggest challenges CEOs and other business leaders tell me is that their workforce is not as engaged as they would like them to be.

This week marks five years since my unexpected hospital visit to have an aggressive melanoma cut out of the top of my left thigh. You can read about it here and here.

Over the last week or two, I’ve had far too many frustrating moments with businesses that provide me with regular services. These have significantly diminished my experience of them, to the point of wondering if it’s worth the hassle of changing providers. And in two instances, it would be a MASSIVE hassle.

CEOs and leaders who don’t have a digital and/or social media presence are missing out on so many opportunities for themselves and for their organisations.

I have been speaking at conferences and events for over 30 years. The first time I was asked to speak publicly, on a stage, with a microphone, was in February 1988 when I was a Rotary Exchange Student in Canada. My highly introverted-self was more than slightly terrified.

CEOs and leaders with an active digital presence have greater influence than those without. They are seen as being more connected, more confident and more curious.

I have quite a bit of [mostly] work-related travel over the next few months. One of the things I most like to do when in a different city is meet up with people in my network. Especially people I’m connected with via all the social channels, but haven’t yet had a chance to meet.

My husband came home from work on the Easter Monday public holiday with a bigger than usual smile on his face. He couldn’t wait to show me the thank you gift he had been given by his manager.

I was in Melbourne over the weekend to facilitate a workshop with an association Board, to help them better understand how to communicate and engage with their members, and the role social media could play. My brief included helping them identify how they can individually provide ongoing support to the marketing communications team by using their personal social media accounts.

There are many skills you need to be a successful social media manager. One of those is knowing how to think strategically. Early in my career it used to really frustrate me when I heard the phrase “you need to think more strategically”, but the people telling me this couldn’t (or wouldn’t) clearly explain what they meant or how I could do that!

“It won’t work.”

“Why not?”

“We’ve never done it that way, it won’t work.”

Last night I was one of the fortunate 120,000 to see Adele during the Brisbane leg of her world tour. I’ve been a fan of her music since I first heard her dulcet tones warbling over the wireless almost ten years ago.

I recently wrote about my experience with a horribly stressful job, and some of the things to look out for to determine if you or your staff are experiencing unusual amounts of stress.

“If you don’t make some major lifestyle changes, you will probably have a stroke before you turn 30.”

As the demands on my time increase, I’m finding it more and more difficult to fit in exercise. Even finding time for a 30 minute walk is difficult if I don’t do it as soon as I get up in the morning. And walking first thing isn’t always possible.