Lead Better
We work with leaders to develop their emotional intelligence, facilitate sustainable change, build exceptional self-leadership and inspire others to perform at their best
Our leadership programs focus on building the skills, attributes, attitudes and characteristics of 21st Century leadership that employees are looking for in their leaders and, when not present, are causing talented people to leave.
Each of our leadership based programs can be developed for differing levels of leaders – the emerging leader, the accidental leader, the established leader and those who want to build their skills of self-leadership.
We use a number of psychometric profiling tools to help leaders develop their emotional intelligence and leadership capability.
BrainSmart Leadership Development Programs
Building Leadership Capacity for the 21st Century
Why this is important
The traditional view and role of leadership is changing as businesses strive to adapt to today’s business environment. Technological and social changes are disrupting successful business models and creating faster paced change and greater complexity. Leaders are being challenged to find better ways of leading themselves and others in a volatile, ambiguous and uncertain world.
Course Overview
The BrainSmart Leadership Academy is an extensive development program with an emphasis and focus on personal leadership, self-awareness, effectiveness and the ability to inspire others.
Each of the 6 modules builds on the next with work-based projects between modules to embed learning. It integrates the use of personal leadership assessment tools based on the principles of neuroscience to facilitate deeper self-awareness and development of those leadership traits, attributes and behaviours required to thrive in the 21st Century.
Module 1 – Introduction and 360 degree leadership assessment
Module 2 – The High Performing Leader
Module 3 – The Collaborative Leader
Module 4 – The Innovative Leader
Module 5 – The Agile Leader
Module 6 – The Resilient Leader
Learning Outcomes
- Build self-awareness through a leading leadership profiling tool
- Master self-leadership through emotional intelligence and social intelligence
- Understand the changing face of leadership and what it means for leading in uncertain times
- Discover why building trust and psychological safety are critical elements of leadership
- Explore how collaboration yields greater outcomes
- Uncover the attributes of the leader’s brain for effective emotion-regulation, decision-making and engagement
- Build skills in facilitating and communicating sustainable change
Creating a Safe Place to Speak up and bring your Whole Self to Work
Why this is Important
A 2017 Gallup poll identified that 3 out of 10 employees strongly agreed that their opinions don’t count at work and working in a hybrid or remote fashion has exacerbated the problem further still, particularly for women with nearly half of female business leaders facing challenges speaking up in virtual meetings.
Put simply, a lack of psychological safety at work is bad for business. Conversely, organisations with teams that have a strong culture of psychological safety perform better.
Psychological safety is defined as a feeling that I won’t be punished, embarrassed or humiliated for speaking up, for asking for help or asking questions, in other words, for taking interpersonal risk (Amy Edmonson).
Research from Edmonson, The Center for Creative Leadership and other sources have found the following benefits of psychologically safe teams:-
- Better learning, innovation and adaptability (vital in this VUCA world Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous)
When employees feel safe to speak up, they can contribute more to the ability of a company to grow, change and adapt.
- Higher creativity levels due to the ability to take chances and the freedom to express opinions
- Stronger individual and team morale as staff who are free to speak up are happier
- More efficient problem-solving as creativity leads to a better ability to solve problems.
- Greater engagement and job satisfaction as employees who feel that their opinion is appreciated become more interested in their job and less likely to want to leave
- Higher productivity. Staff who are creative, happy and engaged lead to higher productivity levels.
Building a Culture of Psychological Safety doesn’t happen overnight and requires a high degree of emotional intelligence from team leaders to role model and demonstrate the courage to take that interpersonal risk.
Course Overview
This program is designed for teams, whether they be intact. Project or cross-functional working in -house or remotely. It is imperative that whoever is leading the team be present and fully included. (We also offer a leadership program ‘Creating a Culture of Psychological Safety’ – see our ‘Lead Better’ section.
Learning Outcomes
- Understand what psychological safety is and isn’t and, through the use of case studies, why it is a critical success factor for teams and organisations
- Understanding the role of our brains in keeping us physically, mentally and emotionally safe and how this drives our behaviour
- Identifying our unique hierarchy of S.O.C.I.A.L® needs and what this means to our levels of psychological safety
- Exploring psychological safety in a hybrid work environment
- Creating systems and processes that facilitate speaking up
- The art of giving and receiving feedback in a way that builds trust
Building Change Agility and Capability, Minimising Change Resistance
Why this is important
Our world has changed forever and there is no going back, there will be no ‘new normal’ and the way we lead teams through change also has to change. The nature and complexity of change requires leaders to understand the nature of change, from acceptance through to resistance, from fearing to embracing.
Still today, the reasons that change initiatives fail are all down to human factors (McKinsey & Co).
This highly practical and interactive programme focuses on a leader’s ability firstly to understand then guide teams through continuous and complex change environments – one brain at a time.
By exploring how and why each individual has a unique response to change, leaders can tailor their approach for greater engagement and productivity.
Course Overview
Leading Teams through Change explores the nature of change from our earliest days, how our brains respond to change and how we can use knowledge of our biology and neurology to create change environments where people feel safe to apply new ways of working.
We address change resistance and how best to work with it, explore the predictable dynamics of change and the do’s and don’ts of communicating change effectively.
Leaning Outcomes
- Identify the impact of the changing landscape ‘post pandemic’ and what this means for people centred change
- Explore how our brain equips us for survival, where change resistance comes from and how to deal with it
- Uncover the myriad factors leading people to have an individual change response
- Learn how to create a psychologically safe change environment where people can share their concerns without repercussion
- Study the language of change and how to communicate key change messages in a way that gets buy in
Download Leading Teams through Change Flyer
"Understanding how the brain functions (BrainSmart) was fascinating and has helped me to be more aware of and understand my team's reaction to change. I hope to be able to manage change and their reaction better going forward"
Mastering the Art and Science of Storytelling to Inform, Influence and Inspire
As a Leader...
- You are in a position of influence knowing the impact that other peoples’ stories have had on your career, your thinking and your values, yet you may still have questions around how to personally use stories for effect.
- You have a wealth of experience and hundreds of stories that can help guide, develop and shape your culture and inspire through times of challenge, change and growth, you may just not be aware of them at this moment.
So how do you create, shape and share your stories? There is a skill to storytelling and an art to uncovering the stories that lie within us all.
Why it is important
Stories have been used for millennia to motivate, inspire action and influence new behaviours. Developing storytelling skills is a cornerstone leadership skill. Stories can also be the most powerful catalyst for change as their recall and emotional connection makes them more memorable than any other form of coaching, instruction or information delivery.
Unfortunately, many leaders don’t think that they’re good storytellers or that their stories are worth telling – in reality, they are missing out on one of the most powerful 21st Century leadership skills.
The use of storytelling in business today is the most under-utilised tool, the use of which can enhance a leader’s reputation, gravitas and impact. It is also a key tool in developing emotional intelligence.
Are your leaders using stories to get the results that they want?
About the Workshop
Story - a Leader's Untapped Superpower is a one day* intensive workshop that guides you to explore, uncover, share and develop your stories for maximum effect and with total authenticity.
Learn how to craft and deliver metaphors and stories that bring meaning to your message maintaining your unique language and style.
Explore the scope of story from the traditional sense through to many and varied applications, each time delivering your message in a way that your people understand, connect with and feel motivated to act upon.
*Can be delivered in a half day with revised agenda and outcomes
Learning Outcomes
In this highly interactive and hands-on workshop** you will gain an invaluable insight into how to use stories to engage both hearts and minds. As a participant you receive your personalised copy of Clare's storytelling workbook, ‘A Sprinkling of Magic’ plus the ebook ‘101 Stories and Metaphors for Business and Life’ and will cover:-
- Discover why story is the most effective form of communication, especially in leadership
- Learn why story trumps data with a tour of your amazing brain on story
- Explore the many different forms of story and varied ways you can use them
- Identify & experience what great storytelling looks like
- Learn the craft and structure of story to inform, influence or inspire
- Uncover your own untapped inventory of stories
- Deliver your story with confidence, clarity and control
Workshops can be customised to meet your organisation’s specific needs and supported by follow-up one-on-one coaching if required. Please contact us for more information.
**As this is a highly experiential workshop we would highly recommend it be delivered in person
Recognising the Importance of self-care in enhancing Performance and Productivity
Why this is Important
Research from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that untreated mental health conditions cost Australian workplaces approximately $10.9 billion per year. This comprises $4.7 billion in absenteeism, $6.1 billion in presenteeism and $146 million in compensation claims (2018).
The above statistics do not exclude those in leadership positions. Stress and burnout are on the rise for today's business leaders (source WHO). In order to be mentally and physically at our best, we must address all elements of self-care as an equal investment.
The topic of self-care for leaders is a serious and necessary one, so we’d like to start with busting some common myths, so we can share a program that makes a real difference to leadership capability:-
- Self-care is not new-age, hippie or self-indulgent – it is a fundamental practice for leaders to be in their best shape to lead effectively
- Working long hours is not a badge of honour – rather it gives an impression to others of poor time and energy management
- Leaders cannot hope to instil a culture of high performance, strong productivity and vitality unless they role model it first
- Leaders are not invincible or immune to stress – they burn out too if they don’t look after themselves
Course Overview
Building Leadership Capability through Self-care focuses on self-investment in 3 core areas that will result in improved mental, physical and emotional health, leading to greater leadership effectiveness and performance.
Workshop content include: -
- The Importance of Quality Sleep, Brain-friendly Nutrition and Exercise on Performance. These are the 3 legs of the self-care stool for ultimate performance
- Maintaining and improving Focus and Attention. The ability to be present and fully attentive through various techniques including Present Attention Awareness (mindfulness), Attentional Intelligence®, Distraction and Energy Management
- Emotion Regulation – the capacity to move from instinctive emotional reactions to considered rational responses and why this skill matters
Learning Outcomes
- Apply the insights from neuroscience to build productive habits to support self-care
- Discover how sleep, diet and exercise improve mood, energy levels and our ability to focus
- Understand the parts of the brain involved in paying attention, focusing, dealing with distractions and accessing insight
- Identify your individual energy patterns and how to work in sync with your energy highs and lows
- Understand the difference between reacting and responding and learn how to regulate emotions to remain calm under pressure
- Create a self-care action plan that is realistic, achievable and can make a considerable difference to physical, mental and emotional performance.
“The main takeaway for me was how your diet, exercise and sleep can affect your resilience and stress levels. This is an area that I know I can easily improve on and that will help” Program Participant
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