Our Programs and Workshops
Our range of professional development programs and workshops falls under 4 pillars - Work Smarter, Lead Better, Build Great Teams and Thrive in Change. We work with you to co-create interactive, engaging and stimulating experiences that deliver measurable outcomes back in the workplace.
Work Smarter
We shift the focus from managing time to mastering energy, attention and cognitive capacity, to create higher productivity and performance, master effective habits and create a healthy work/life balance.
The difference between a highly productive day and leaving work feeling frustrated is down to creating habits and routines of productivity and self-care.
Our ‘Work Smarter’ series of workshops are designed to help you identify what’s working, what’s not – and make a sustainable change.
Productivity Development Programs
Transforming from Distraction and Procrastination to Focus and Action
Why this is important
Neuroscience is showing us that our best thinking lasts for a finite amount of time and we need to use it wisely. We are also driven by habit.
At least 50% of what we do on a daily basis might feel like conscious decisions but are actually automated processes – habits (Prof. Wendy Wood USC).
Habits are necessary - they help us to function effectively in an increasingly fast-paced and complex world - but are our habits helping or hindering our effectiveness and productivity? In a world of information overload, what is the true cost of habits of distraction and procrastination?
As leaders, are we leading in a way that role models productive habits?
Course Overview
Creating Productivity Habits of Excellence is a powerful message for anyone who wants better results from their time and time to design better results - it all comes down to developing stronger habits.
This highly practical and enlightening workshop will leave participants feeling empowered to make change in those areas that have been keeping them stuck in ineffective habit and routine.
Learning Outcomes
- Explore how our brain creates and forms habit
- Identify the 3 critical elements of a habit and which one to change for success
- Discover why energy is more important than time and how it helps create efficiency habits
- Uncover what our leadership habits of productivity demonstrate to our people
- Learn practical, implementable strategies for developing and maintaining focus and attention
- Come away feeling inspired to action by applying the H.A.B.I.T.S formula for greater productivity, a healthier lifestyle and a real sense of achievement
“Really useful to consider habits and whether they are adding value or taking away. Interesting to see the effects of habits, very useful for practical application”
Creating Learning Experiences that Engage, Inspire and Stick
Skilling people up is an expensive business. There are numerous explicit and hidden costs and a return on investment is essential in the form of increased sustained performance.
If we want learners to be inspired to go back to their workplace and implement what they have learned, then we need to make learning an inspiring, unforgettable and enjoyable experience.
In an age of business disruption where innovation and creativity are key differentiators, how people remember, apply and use what they have learned, is a critical success factor
Did you know that people can forget 50-80% of what they’ve learned after one day and 97-98% after just a month? (University Waterloo, Ontario). When we create learning experiences for others, we need to start with the brain in mind. Understanding how our brains learn, remember and forget, sets the scene for creating an enriching environment where people want to actively participate, gain skills and knowledge and change for the better.
Course Overview
Mastering BrainSmart Learning is a one-day deep dive into the world of learning and how to create learning environments and experiences that cater to differing intelligences, learning preferences and maximise application back in the workplace.
Learning Outcomes
- Learn a six step process for total inclusion and involvement in the learning experience
- Explore how our brains learn, remember and forget and what to do about it
- Design learning sessions that cater to our multiple intelligences
- Create an environment where learners are motivated to learn
- Discover why story and metaphor are the secret ingredients to powerful learning
- Learn the 8 R’s of embedding learning so that knowledge is retained not forgotten
- Master how to maintain your own motivation and emotional state to inspire
“What a brilliant day, you are such an engaging facilitator and the team really enjoyed the workshop and have already been trying out their stories and metaphors” B.T. Bunnings QLD/NT
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).
Most of our working lives are spent serving others in some form or another and it’s all too easy to lose focus on yourself – and that’s not a sustainable strategy. Terms such as empathy fatigue are finding their way into everyday vernacular. There is a cost to serving others without serving yourself first, a cost that isn't always easy to recover. 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 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 your productivity and performance:-
- Self-care is not new-age, hippie or self-indulgent – it is a fundamental practice for people to be in their best shape to perform 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
Serve Yourself First focuses on self-investment in 3 core areas that will result in improved mental, physical and emotional health, leading to greater personal and professional effectiveness and performance.
Workshop content include: -
- The Importance of Quality Sleep, Brain-friendly Nutrition and Aerobic 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
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.
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 Social 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 to the concept of Social Leadership
Module 2 – The Social Leader Part 1
Module 3 – The Social Leader Part 2
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
DOWNLOAD SELF-CARE FOR LEADERSHIP FLYER
Build Great Teams
We challenge and support teams and their leaders to be the best version of themselves, to harness their collective strengths, embrace diversity & build real inclusion to create tribes that thrive.
Our team-based workshops focus on how to make the whole greater than the sum of the parts through acknowledging and honouring that there is an ‘I’ in team and working to build a sense of pride, belonging and motivation, resulting in teams that know what’s expected of them, know where they’re headed and work together to achieve collective goals and outcomes.
We use a number of psychometric profiling tools to help team members develop a deeper understanding of themselves and others and they way they prefer to work.
Team Development Programs
Creating Team Clarity, Harnessing Collective Strengths to deliver Superior Performance
Why this is important
Our brains are social organs and connection is one of our core social needs. In business we are all required to work with others in a team environment to achieve collective goals and objectives, so it is crucial that we can work together productively and effectively for everyone’s benefit.
Course Overview
Building BrainSmart Teams uncovers the skills, attitudes and behaviours required to build and grow cohesive, high performing teams that can work together to create successful outcomes.
Because the scope of teamwork is so broad, we strongly customise the content of each program to cater to the specific challenges and outcomes of your teams. Content and learning outcomes will be co-created.
We also encourage the use of team profiling tools in our team-based programs e.g. Team Management Systems (TMS), DiSC or The 5 Behaviours of a Cohesive Team. More information can be found about these in our section on psychometric profiling tools.
Learning Outcomes
- Exploring the social nature of our brains
- Transforming from a group to a team to a tribe
- Exploring the development lifecycle of teams, identifying where the team is
- Creating shared goals and responsibilities
- Building an environment of trust and psychological safety
- Developing effective communication processes
- Understanding the different personalities in the team and how to optimise this (through a team profiling tool)
- Agreeing desired and undesired behaviours and what to do when boundaries are crossed
- Creating a defined, empowering team mission, vision and charter
“Thank you for helping me establish a true ‘team’ mentality, embrace change and drive higher motivation together”.
AM Tibco Software
Building Understanding and Collaboration to unleash the Power of Teams
Why this is important
A wide body of research has shown that diverse teams consistently outperform homogeneous teams, especially when it comes to creative, or complex tasks. Diversity offers different ways of thinking about problems and opportunities and avoids the issues associated with groupthink.
Rather than being considered a nice-to-have in the workplace, when it is harnessed properly, diversity is a proven differentiator of performance. Diversity, however, doesn’t guarantee inclusion. Our brains create thinking shortcuts and mental rules to be efficient and keep us safe. These mean that we are often operating from unconscious biases that constantly influence who we relate to, what information we pay attention to and how we make decisions.
Creating an inclusive team environment requires understanding each other, our biases and creating strategies to mitigate and minimise them.
Course Overview
Harnessing Team Diversity and Inclusion is a highly practical and interactive workshop to help teams value different individual perspectives (using team profiling tools), improve team problem solving and decision making, foster collaboration, build trust and psychological safety and deal productively with conflict.
Learning Outcomes
- Learn the role of our brain in creating unconscious bias
- Understand how our biases influence how we work together as a team
- Discover how our differing personality preferences can impact team cohesion and performance
- Explore how to harness differing strengths to make the whole greater than the sum of the parts
- Identify behaviours and language that can result in exclusion
- Build a culture of psychological safety where everyone can bring their whole selves to work and feel safe to speak up
- Learn how to manage emotions and deal with conflict to create the best environment for thinking effectively and making decisions
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"
Building awareness of how those judgements and stereotyping we are unaware of are impacting the decisions we make, the relationships we build and the results that we get. Shining a light on Bias, taking Practical Action to mitigate its Effects
Why this is Important
Our unconscious biases directly affect not only who gets hired, developed and promoted, but also the ability of teams to perform at a high level, the effectiveness of our leaders in decision-making and change, the health of an organisation’s culture and the relationship it has with its customers.
Course Overview
Getting to Grips with Unconscious Bias is a highly interactive workshop that explores the world of human evolution, neuroscience and the different approaches being taken to address workplace bias. The focus is on increasing our understanding of the most prevalent biases that impact our ability to be impartial and objective and on developing practical strategies to deal with bias effectively.
Learning Outcomes
- Explore the role of our brain in creating unconscious bias in ourselves and others
- Understand the impact of leaving unconscious bias unaddressed in all parts of the organisation
- Uncover the origins and influencers of unconscious bias
- Make the unconscious conscious through awareness
- Work through how to manage the most prevalent biases in our workplace
- Develop practical strategies to develop awareness and mitigate our biases
"This was the best Unconscious Bias training I have ever attended. I found this workshop to be so interactive, fun and interesting. Clare was a great facilitator and really read the energy of the room and tailored the session to suit the needs of the group. She made the information enjoyable and easy to absorb". RS - Rural City of Wangaratta
Thrive in Change
We help you as individuals, teams or leaders to build resilience, manage stress and develop your ability to thrive in change through developing your change readiness and agility. We guide you as people leaders to facilitate sustainable change and develop a growth mindset culture.
All of our change programmes have as their foundation, a deep understanding of the nature of change and human behaviour. It is only when we work with those facing change and feeling uncertain, in an empathic and compassionate manner, that we can achieve the desired results, so bringing everyone with us on the change journey.
We offer 5 core programmes related to thriving in change starting with our flagship 'Dealing with Change and Building Resilience' programme that can be delivered online or face to face, plus 4 additional programmes that cover confidence, self-care, emotion regulation (staying col under pressure) and leading teams through change.
More information below.
Change and Resilience Programs
Transforming our Approach to Change and Building our Capacity to Thrive
Why this is Important
Our working world has changed and will continue to change beyond recognition. As we navigate both the post Covid era and the new world of Artificial Intelligence, we face unprecedented challenges and levels of uncertainty about the future.
Our lives have become more complex with continual changing circumstances. At work, we are experiencing fast-paced, last minute change, we are experiencing information overload and we are dealing with greater levels of uncertainty than ever before, concerned about the impact of AI.
These work and life pressures are resulting in increased exposure to physical and emotional stress and are making it more difficult for us to stay focused, be present and find a healthy work-life balance.
We know that negative stress impacts our ability to think effectively, make good decisions, come up with new ideas, maintain strong relationships and cope well under pressure.
Dealing with Change and Building Resilience explores how we can learn to make change our friend, to get comfortable with change and even to embrace it through a deeper understanding of the human biology of change, what we can predict about change and how we respond or react to change. With this knowledge we can then build easy to implement strategies that reduce our stress responses and help develop greater change readiness and agility, leaving us energised, able to focus and, most of all, to be present with our colleagues and loved ones.
It's time to move from surviving to thriving in change
This 6 module programme is designed to equip you with the knowledge, strategies and tools to thrive in change and boost your resilience levels both within and outside the work environment.
Each Module builds on the next and there are options to complete short projects in between modules.
Module 1 – The History of Change and our Brains and Change
Module 2 – Understanding Stress
Module 3 – Strategies for reducing Stress
Module 4 – Understanding Change
Module 5 – Strategies for dealing with Change
Module 6 – Building Resilience
Learning Outcomes
- Understand the nature of change from the perspective of evolution and neuroscience
- Uncover what we can predict about change and how to turn emotional reactions into measured responses
- Explore the nature of stress, our individual stress triggers and what to do to reduce and minimise stress
- Discover the 3 elements of self-care that boost our ability to deal with uncertainty and ambiguity
- Master simple yet highly effective strategies and tools that build and strengthen our resilience muscle
- Identify the strategies used by the world’s most resilient people and learn how to develop the capacity to bounce back from adversity
- Create easy to implement action plans that equip you with the tools and tactics to stay cool under pressure, deal with uncertainty and thrive in fast-paced change
- Come away with a greater sense of clarity, control and calm
BrainSmart Case Study
We have been working with an organisation in the Financial Services sector delivering the Dealing with Change and Building Resilience programme in a blended learning format and with significant positive results.
Feedback from Past Programme Participants
“Amazing information to understand how we are built to resist change and how we are also equipped to manage stress and deal with change in a positive way” TAFE NSW
"The corporate workplace is a place of high change. This sort of training is so valuable for all organisational levels as the BrainSmart approach delivers quality, professional, scientific approaches, based on human neuroscience, that will help any individual think about their approach to challenging situations and be able to handle situations with building resilience to move forward. Really enjoyed the online training and do refer back to the video at times of difficult situations. Highly recommended". The Speaker's Practice
“Please thank whoever arranged this course for us. Today I felt happy coming to work as I no longer feel helpless as I have new strategies to explore in terms of why I feel what I feel in situations and how I can communicate to get my needs met. It has been another defining moment in my life.” Unitywater
"The insight on how the brain works has helped me plan my day and week better to avoid 'going limbic'! I now plan tasks which require new thinking or concentration for limited periods throughout each day and break them up with routine tasks" Cuscal
Please click on the video link below and download the programme flyer to find out more.
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 Emotionally Intelligent Personal Leadership
Why this is Important
We operate in a VUCA world, a business environment that is Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous.
It seems that we are faced on a daily basis with having to do more with less, cope with an unprecedented volume and speed of change and make decisions and solve problems to ever-increasing complex issues – then go home and forget all about it.
The pressure is on for us to be effective and efficient despite all of these challenges and, according to research from multiple sources (inc. Work Safe Australia and Medibank), workplace stress is affecting 73% of workers in Australia, which means that we need to address how we manage pressure and stress.
Course Overview
Staying Cool Under Pressure is an exploration into the world of understanding stress and regulating emotions. It’s the nearest we’ll ever get to having a user manual for the brain and the strategies that we share are guaranteed to work….if implemented.
The focus is on developing strategies to help people keep their head when all around seems in chaos, to remain calm under pressure and transition from work to home arriving fully present for loved ones.
Learning Outcomes
- Identify the key parts of the brain responsible for staying calm and ‘losing it’
- Explore 4 core pressure sources in the workplace
- Build self-awareness around individual pressure points
- Identify your sweet spot for positive stress and performance
- Learn 8 strategies for staying cool under pressure, all of which are immediately implementable
- Understand the critical difference between reacting and responding
- Learn and apply practical, sustainable strategies for staying cool under pressure
We also deliver a leader’s version of this program focusing on specific leadership challenges and strategies
“You delivered an engaging and highly interactive session on Staying Cool under Pressure as part of my firm’s learning and development seminars for in-house lawyers. The session thoughtfully explored the world of understanding stress and managing emotions. We were challenged to think differently in order to become better leaders and managers that are inspiring, imaginative and engaging” – SL - Squire Patton Boggs
Addressing our ‘real’ Fears and Building Confidence to Present with Impact
Why this is important
It is widely accepted that fear of public speaking is a major obstacle in business and life for many and can hold us back significantly from progress.
The real fear is not the speaking per se, we do that on a daily basis, rather it’s the doubting internal dialogue starting with “What If?”
Course Overview
Speak UP! Is a comprehensive, highly experiential workshop that takes participants on a journey of building confidence, delivering with confidence and clarity, maintaining control to authentically influence others.
Delivered in 2 parts, the first element of this program explores, uncovers and deals with those fears and concerns we have about speaking in public and influencing those in authority.
The second part of the program covers preparation, presenting and influencing skills that result in audiences being and staying engaged and motivated to action. We explore end to end from an attention-grabbing opening to an impactful conclusion and close.
Learning Outcomes
- Understand the role of the mind in creating ineffective protection strategies
- Explore our unique stress response and how to manage it
- Use knowledge of the mind to prepare effectively and deliver with gravitas
- Learn and apply a highly effective model for structuring your presentations
- Uncover the power of story and metaphor over data and statistics
- Address the needs and preferences of the audience in every presentation
- Deal confidently and calmly with unexpected challenges and questions
- Model the excellence you see in the greatest influencers of our time
“Clare has a great way of simplifying how your brain deals with speaking and rationalising thoughts and behaviours. She gave me some great tips in how to tweak my performance and get the audience engaged and was able to help me think about succinct sound bites that the audience will take away and remember!” HC - HC Marketing
Recognising the Importance of self-care in Wellbeing and Performance
Why this is Important
We could be forgiven for thinking that we’re in some kind of film, an alternate reality – but the truth is, we are firmly ensconced in these topsy turvy times and it’s taking its toll.
As people who spend their working (and probably home) lives serving others, it’s all too easy to lose focus on yourself – and that’s not a sustainable strategy.
Terms such as compassion fatigue are finding their way into everyday vernacular. There is a cost to caring without serving yourself first, a cost that isn't always easy to recover.
Course Overview
Serve Yourself First! is an exploration into the world of self-care from differing perspectives and why, though maybe an overused cliché, we need to metaphorically put on our own oxygen masks first, before helping others.
There are conditions that our brains and bodies require to function effectively and when any of those conditions are neglected, the whole system is impacted and with negative consequences.
It’s time to invest some quality time learning about the benefits of self-care, what self-care does to our amazing brains and simple, easy-to-implement strategies to replenish your cup and recharge your batteries for good!
Learning Outcomes
• Why self-care is a critical element of resilience
• Why prioritising self-care is the only way to serve others
• The 3-legged stool of self-care and the difference it can make to your physical, mental and emotional health
• The importance of creating boundaries, keeping commitments and setting priorities
• How to create and maintain self-care habits, rituals and routines
• Self-care strategies that don’t cost the earth yet can work wonders
Clare's 'Serve Yourself First' workshop was absolutely packed with clearly delivered information and strategies, and the team commented on how valuable it was to have practical tips and tools that could be easily applied. Alison Cannell, UnitingCare