Navigating the concept of overqualified when job seeking and hiring
Publication: communication | HR | performance
You have the skills and capability for the role and nail the interview. However, then you get the rejection email or phone call. You find out that it’s not that you weren’t good enough for the role. The problem is you were too good for the position and were rejected because you are ‘overqualified’. You’ll […]
It is personal
Publication: communication | emotions | stakeholders
We are often told not to make things personal, yet it is personal. A good example. Recently, I received the following email: “I came across Michelle Gibbings and saw that you are into theatre shows. Although theatre is an enchanting industry, I believe that your shows can benefit from having a wider range of audience […]
Can loyalty go too far?
Publication: leadership | stakeholders | workplace
If you’ve ever watched the TV show Survivor, you’ll know that as the game unfolds, the cast members build alliances, ditch alliances and generally scheme as they try to plot their way to the top of the totem pole. Loyalty between the players lasts for a while, but they know that they’ll need to cast it […]
How do you know it’s true?
Publication: communication | emotions | influence
Spoofing, spamming, scamming, impersonating, misinformation and hacking. You’ve likely been a victim of one or all of these, and if the predictions are correct, the frequency and sophistication will get worse. Last weekend, I woke up to someone impersonating me on Instagram (not a fun feeling), and I’ve had emails sent out under my name […]
Is technology controlling you, or are you controlling it?
Publication: happiness | performance | stress
Over the summer, I had the joy of spending six days in nature. There was no technology. I didn’t listen to music or podcasts while walking. Instead, I focused on putting one foot in front of the other and regularly stopping to immerse myself in the awe of the surrounding environment. If you’ve ever spent […]
How to work with difficult people
Publication: communication | emotions | workplace
Many years ago, I worked with someone who took an instant dislike to me. In our interactions, they were rude, abrupt and generally unhelpful. I never got to the reason for their behaviour, but I did find a way to manage it. My approach was the opposite of their behaviour. I went out of my […]
When helping becomes unhelpful
Publication: habits | performance | workplace
In the delightful children’s book, The Boy, the Fox, the Horse and the Mole, a young boy becomes friends with three animals and along the way learns the wisdom of kindness. In the book, the young boy asks the horse, “What is the bravest thing you’ve ever said? ‘Help,’ said the horse. ‘Asking for help isn’t […]
Are you going beyond capability?
Publication: organisations | performance | stakeholders
At some stage in your career, you will likely have looked at someone in the hierarchy above you and wondered how they got there. There’s a saying that everyone rises to their own level of incompetence. It’s a concept initially developed by Canadian educator and author Laurence J Peter and published in the book, The Peter Principle, which […]
Be ready for it to go off the rails
Publication: change management | strategy | Success
Have you ever had a time when you planned a project, initiative or piece of work, and it didn’t go to plan? It might have been that it took longer than anticipated, required more resources, was more costly, the benefits weren’t realised, or you discovered it didn’t come to fruition as expected. The list of […]
As AI goes mainstream are you ready for it?
Publication: organisations | progress | workplace
Over the summer holiday, it felt like one conversation kept appearing in articles I was reading… and that was ChatGPT. ChatGPT is an online tool where users can ask questions and get intelligent responses. It’s heralded as the best AI chatbot ever released to the general public, while others suggest it can be dangerous and could even impact democratic […]