Author Archives: Lynda Russell-Whitaker
Leadership style, by Lynda Russell-Whitaker
At this time of the year, when Christmas is fast upon us, millions of people continue to celebrate the birth of a religious leader that occurred more than two thousand years ago. Therefore, I have been musing on what for me are the essential characteristics of a great leader, not then but now, in the […]
Listening and [Mis]interpreting
“One often contradicts an opinion when what is uncongenial is really the tone in which it is conveyed.” Friedrich Nietzsche This article is not just about the tone we employ, but about interpreting or misinterpreting what has been said. Though our tone of voice can play a critical part in how what we mean to […]
Teaching old dogs new tricks
By Lynda Russel-Whitaker Jumping on the ‘neuro’ fever that has had the UK in its grip for more than a year now, I’ve been reading a lot of research on ‘neural plasticity’ or the malleability of the brain. New findings are indicating that our brains remain very plastic well into adulthood. The thing is we actually know that […]
It takes practice to practise
By Lynda Russell-Whitaker Practice isn’t the thing you do once you’re good. It’s the thing you do that makes you good. From Malcolm Gladwell, ‘Outliers: The Story of Success The title of this article might seem like stating the obvious, but the fact is it does actually take practice to practise. As the quote by […]
Rapport – can it be too much of a good thing?
By Lynda Russell-Whitaker I’ve seen rapport described as ‘trust + responsiveness’, though this is primarily amongst NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) practitioners. One dictionary definition says rapport is ‘sympathetic relationship or understanding’. However, I believe good relationships develop over time and that rapport is an important part of building a good relationship. Establishing rapport starts with a […]
Accentuate the positive
By Lynda Russell-Whitaker “You’ve got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don’t mess with Mister In between.” From music by Harold Arlen, and lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Published in 1944. Whenever I hear this song (Rumer released a very good cover version in late 2012) it makes me smile, […]
Telling stories
By Lynda Russell-Whitaker ‘We are lonesome animals. We spend all of our life trying to be less lonesome. One of our ancient methods is to tell a story begging the listener to say – and to feel – “Yes, that is the way it is, or at least that is the way I feel it.” […]
Consistency = Reliability
By Lynda Russell-Whitaker “There are those who would misteach us that to stick in a rut is consistency – and a virtue; and that to climb out of that rut is inconsistency – and a vice” Mark Twain, Consistency speech, 1887 In this article I argue the value of consistency. I’m certainly not advocating that […]
Less is more
By Lynda Russell-Whitaker “Whenever you feel an impulse to perpetrate a piece of exceptionally fine writing, obey it – whole-heartedly – and delete it before sending your manuscripts to press. Murder your darlings”. So said Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch in his inaugural lecture series in Cambridge (published in 1916). The expression ‘murder your darlings’ though has […]
