This post is inspired by a journaling prompt from my Flown Take-off session yesterday (Flown is a place where people working alone or remotely can go to be part of a community focussed on helping each other do deep work and be creative). Pause - a still and calm moment. A cessation of sound, noise… Continue reading What does the word “pause” mean to you?
Category: coaching topics
What’s in your stress bucket?
I love a good model or framework - they help me make sense of things and to plan next steps. This week I've been doing my Mental Health First Aider training and have come across the "stress container" model. I thought it would be useful to share here as often people turn to coaching at… Continue reading What’s in your stress bucket?
Imposter syndrome and research
"Did you know that you have more citations in the 2 years since you left academia than in the previous 5 years?" My thoughts went: 1. "wait what?" (it's true according to Google Scholar) 2. "well that's because I was working with some fantastic people in the last couple of years on some very relevant… Continue reading Imposter syndrome and research
Can anybody hear me?
How do you know that you have been heard? How does it feel when you know that you have truly been listened to and really heard? And when was the last time that you felt or knew that you had been heard? A common (and welcome) bit of feedback from the people I work with… Continue reading Can anybody hear me?
Talking and listening
"Well, it's clear to me that your son does NOT have a hearing problem. He has a listening problem." Probably a low point in my parenting career there. But I was reminded of it by a comment from a fellow climate scientist in the context of the COP26 being held in Glasgow this week. Talking… Continue reading Talking and listening
Information overload
I am famous in our house for being unable to cope with two many simultaneous audio inputs. How people can cope with TV, game on their phones and conversation at the same time I have no idea. I get overloaded with audio information about 2 devices ahead of anyone else. But it’s not just audio.… Continue reading Information overload
Balance, blend, whatever! A blog for Work-Life week 2021
In 2019 I wrote about work-life blend rather than work-life balance. I was moving towards recognising that flexibility and agility were important for me rather than a totally strict split. However, it was still pretty much work or everything else because working days and school days dictated certain patterns and separation. Wind forward 5 years… Continue reading Balance, blend, whatever! A blog for Work-Life week 2021
Wheel of Life Exercise
This exercise helps you to identify what you are most happy with and where you might want to make changes. The Wheel of Life exercise is a way to visualise all the different parts of your life and to balance up how you feel about each area. Start by drawing a circle-ish shape, then divide… Continue reading Wheel of Life Exercise
Woman, Interrupted… constantly!
Self-care. Love or hate the phrase, it's pretty much impossible to avoid at the moment. Personally there are some days I don't mind it, and other days when it really makes me groan. I'm not sure why to be honest. However, I belong to a number of social media groups around being a freelancer. One… Continue reading Woman, Interrupted… constantly!
Boiling academics – a post for Mental Health Awareness Week 2021
Its nearly 2 years since I left my employed role as an academic. I left because there was an opportunity to do more of the things I liked and values, and less of the things I found stressful and de-energising. Whilst being self-employed is certainly not stress-free even outside of a global pandemic, there is… Continue reading Boiling academics – a post for Mental Health Awareness Week 2021
Ellie Highwood - Leadership, Career and Personal Development Coach 