Smelling The Roses

Autumn is my least favourite season as I grieve outgoing summer.

The antidote was a Smelling the Roses team trip to Newhaven on the newly extended tram with a coffee at Jane’s suggested Porto & Fi

We were seated at a large window table which could happily house 8. We noticed many people on their own - we counted 7 singletons who were taking up tables for 4 as larger parties were turned away.

So the morning’s chat was around how to reorganise the café.

Why not put our large table in the centre so that people on their own could choose to mingle and perhaps talk to each other. Not for everyone of course but for those who desire a bit of social diversion that option could be supplied.

As a coach I have talked to many clients recently who work at home alone, crash after a 12 hour shift online to watch TV, go to bed then repeat…. Loneliness is rampant.

For those in offices their only socialising might still be at work so supplying comfortable places to sit and chat during breaks becomes essential as a major focus post pandemic is on good mental health.

I remember talking to Steve an eminent scientist who recounted that when his company put sofas and coffee makers on each floor in between departments not only did the scientists mingle socially much more but the chat led to the sharing of ideas from different departments, creativity increased, problems were solved and best practice implemented. All for the price of a coffee machine and a couch!

So Porto and Fi, if you are reading this, get that big table moved to the centre and watch people connect.

Today is World Creativity & Innovation Day 🧠

While writing my book, Creativity at Work I looked at the tools that were commonly used to boost creativity. One of these was brainstorming.

When it comes to brainstorming, there are 4 guidelines

1 – Focus on quantity. The assumption is that the more ideas generated, the greater the chance of producing an effective, different solution.

2 – No criticism. Focus on extending or adding to ideas rather than criticising. By suspending judgement, participants will feel free to come up with more ‘off the wall’ ideas.

3 – Reward unusual ideas. To get a long list of ideas, unusual ideas should be welcomed. New ways of thinking can provide better solutions.

4 – Combine & improve ideas. Good ideas may be combined to form a single, even better, idea. This process is often called ‘piggybacking’ as group members add to others’ ideas as they are written down.

The main brainstorming propositions are that everyone can be involved and it should be fun, creating energy to generate new concepts and solutions.

What do you do to boost creativity?

When I first started to study psychology, it was like Saul on the road to Damascus. A complete awakening. Instead of reading History French or English which I saw as a continuation of school, I could study people and talk to people, something I had being doing most of my life and now I could get a degree in it.

I was an only child and when I was let out all I wanted to do was talk. After my first degree I then embarked on studying clinical psychology and quickly learned that to be effective as a practice psychologist I had to remain silent and learn the power of listening.

I remember attending a lecture by the famous psychologist Sir John Whitmore where he placed the audience in pairs facing each other in silence. All we had to do was look at the person opposite and work out what we thought of them. People squirmed, shifting in seats, averting eyes, profoundly uncomfortable.

Even more telling was in the absence of talking, partners made up stories about the person they faced, becoming judgemental and not in a good way. I was aware as a result of that exercise that we judge the people around us even when we never actually talk to them.

When you are out and about, ask people at bus stops, stations, cafes what they do,where they do it and just listen in silence and learn.

Silence is very important when you coach as it provides thinking space for both coach and client. But to be able to sit in silence requires relaxation, to hold a gaze needs openness and trust with a complete lack of judgement.

Silence’s sister is listening. You listen with ears and eyes, always focussing on understanding. What is like to be the person in front of you, in their life.

So on this day of celebrating silence, look, listen and learn the power of shutting up.

Yesterday marked the first day of spring. Spring brings longer days, lighter nights and lots of exciting possibilities. 💐

It is a great time to look at tackling new career goals and make some fresh starts in your career. Here are 5 tips for a career spring clean.

1 – Set new goals. Visualise where you would like to be by the end of the year and put steps in place to make this happen.

2 – Have a digital declutter. From your inbox to your LinkedIn connections, get rid of anything you no longer need or that is out of date.

3 – Identify any skill gaps. What areas would you like to upskill? Are there opportunities for in house development or any courses you could take?

4 – Ask for feedback. Receiving feedback is a great learning opportunity no matter how uncomfortable it might be at the time. Research shows that people who receive frequent feedback are 2.7 times more likely to be engaged at work.

5 – Organise your workspace. A cluttered workspace can have negative effects on stress levels as well as impairing our ability to focus. Scientists at the Princeton University Neuroscience Institute found that when participants cleared clutter from their workspace they were better able to process information and their productivity increased. Also make your bed in the morning. That small piece of organisation sets the scene for the rest of the day.