Woody Wonders

Emotional Intelligence "The capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically" According to some studies, 'emotional intelligence' is the key to both personal and professional success.   Fabulous, I'm off to the shop to buy a sackful of EI.  Some time later .... damn it!  So what can we do to develop EI?   Before we start though, can I just point out the empathy component.  My fitness clients will know that I ooze empathy so I really don't need to work on this part!!  😬 Although there are a few different variations on the components which make up EI, the ones shown in the picture above seem to be the most popular.  Their definitions are as follows: Self-awareness - 'ability to recognise your moods and emotions, as well as their affect on others' Empathy - 'ability to understand the emotions of others and skill in dealing with ot...

In keeping with this month's theme of optimism, positivity and looking forward, this week's blog is about finding the motivation to stop putting off the things you need or want to do. Despite being a complete and utter geek who loves learning, there are still times when I struggle to find the motivation to practise my French or do some work for the online fitness course I'm doing at the moment (and desperately trying to finish before the end of the year!). I heard a great quote the other day which really rings true when it comes to finding the motivation to do something.   "By saying yes to doing one thing then  you're saying no to doing something else" In other words, by saying yes to watching The Apprentice (my guilty pleasure!) then I'm saying no to practising my French.  Now let's get something straight, there is absolutely nothing wrong whatsoever if watching The Apprentice is what I want to do at that particular moment in tim...

Optimistic October As we are in the throes of 'Optimistic October', I thought I'd share some thoughts on how we can learn to be more optimistic, because I do truly believe it's something we can learn.   We usually get pigeon-holed into being either optimistic or pessimistic.  How many times have you heard "oh you always look on the bright side, you're such an optimistic", or likewise, "god you always think the worst, you're such a pessimist".  As with most things in life, I believe our feelings can swing between the two.  Especially when things aren't quite going to plan, I often immediately think the worst before reality takes a hold and I can then start thinking logically on how to remedy the situation. According to studies, around 25% of our optimism/pessimism is inherited so that's a massive 75% we can work on.  Let's make a start by doing the following: 1.  Put your optimistic goggles on Don't let o...

Forget networking, you need to chatwork! I'm kicking off 'Optimistic October' with a positive story and showing how one simple thing can lead to a whole chain of events. This weekend me and Mr Bob have been mad for it ar kid in the great northern powerhouse city that is Manchester. Way back in July of this year I attended a PA conference and was lucky enough to win a two night stay in a boutique hotel, which also happened to be in Manchester.  All I had to do to enter the competition was to leave my email address and phone number. Well done me for getting both of them correct!    This happy little story came about simply by me plucking up the courage to go to my boss and say, “I don’t suppose I could attend this conference by any chance could I?   I think it would be really good.”   It turned out to be a fabulous two day conference where I not only learnt so much but won this amazing competition to boot!   I'd stopped to c...