Celebrate!

This Sunday 5th February marks the start of International Coaching Week (ICW). A week long global celebration of the coaching profession held annually, during the first full week in February. You can find out more here EMCC and here ICF. 

There are loads of ways to celebrate and participate. Amongst other things, I’m providing pro-bono coaching and helping a fantastic group of EMCC volunteers to launch the EMCC UK Cambridge Network on Tuesday evening. 

I’m also going to run a series of blogs through the week on the theme of both coaching & mentoring. I have a few ideas but then thought why not ask you to join in the fun!  Here’s how you can participate: 

Challenge me!

So what are the questions you have about coaching & mentoring? Is there anything you’ve always wondered but have never asked about? Do you have questions or concerns about coaching or mentoring?

Just share what you'd like to be discussed and I'll try to blog about them.  I don't promise any answers but I will happily explore with you!

Collaborate with me!

Would you like to guest blog here on any coaching & mentoring related subject? You don’t have to be an expert. You don’t have to be a coach or mentor. If you have a perspective or experience related to coaching or mentoring that you’d like to share in detail here then I’d be delighted to help. 

Celebrate with me!

It would be great to celebrate your own activities and experiences of ICW.  If you are already participating in #ICW then let me know what you are up to - blog links also welcome.

Need Help?

If you want to celebrate but don’t know how, just give me a call. Myself and I’m sure other colleagues would be happy to either suggest ideas or even support you. 

What next? 

Well if the above has piqued your curiosity or just want to jump in with both feet then just let me know!  You can either use the comments form below, tweet me directly here or email me here. 

Look forward to hearing from you!

The one where the "Boot" was on the other foot – Part 4 "The Art of Giving"

Last week I was invited to join a demonstration day with TrainersKitbag (@trainerskitbag) and in this week’s series of blogs I’ve talked about my reflections from the day.  In today’s final blog I’d like to share my reflections regarding Generosity.

Part 4 “The Art of Giving”

By Christopher Smart, via Wikimedia Commons

I’m sure none of us are strangers to giving or even being generous.  It’s part of being human… sending gifts on birthdays... helping out with a bit of DIY… taking time to listen to a friend’s problems.  For most of us it’s what we do with our friends & families and it’s rewarding.  We often don’t think about it being an act of generosity.

Even when we look to give our time or money to strangers, say through voluntary support or charitable donations, we still tend not to talk about our acts as being generous.

The meaning of generosity

Perhaps take a moment to reflect on the meaning of gen·er·os·i·ty :

• Liberality in giving or willingness to give one’s money, time, etc.
• Nobility of thought or behavior; magnanimity.
• Free from pettiness in character & mind
• Amplitude; abundance; plentiful

I’d forgotten the word's Latin origins.  It derives from generōsus, which means "of noble birth".  Originally, being generous was literally a way of complying to nobility.  Over time this origin has been lost but the sentiment hasn’t.  Generosity as an act of giving is still seen by many as an act of humanity.

The generosity of strangers

The nature of the Trainers Kit Bag “Property Trading Game” game requires you to perform tasks.  Sometimes these involve asking strangers for information or help.  Throughout our day we were struck by just how spontaneously people would help us with what were sometimes quite bizarre requests…

• The gentleman on Pall Mall whom we asked for a business card.  He’d have happily given one to us but he’d just given a man who had had his car clamped £20 for a train fare and had given him his last business card so he could post the money back.  His view was that he wanted to help and he may never see that £20 pound again but that wasn’t really the point.  You had to trust in human nature.  A very genuine and lovely person.
• The armed policeman dashing out for his lunch break who gladly stopped and posed for a smiling “team photo” before heading into McDonalds for his “fix”.
• The endless shopkeepers, hotel staff & theatre box offices who took time to listen to our strange requests and helped us where they could.  Yet, we bought nothing from them apart from a 50p “Sights of London” pencil.
• Perhaps most surprisingly was @RichardAArnold.  Having been spotted walking past us on the Strand, @StirTheSource ran after him and he gladly helped us with our much needed celebrity photo and autograph.  He took time to talk about what we were doing and shared a laugh.  Firstly though he went to the bank, then came back and found us, all on his birthday with a hangover.  That’s generosity!

The Art of Giving

On reflection, it’s perhaps not surprising that a day that started with the generosity of Trainers Kit Bag, continued in that same vein throughout.  Even to the end of the day when someone I’d just met for the first time asked “Is there anything I can do to help you?”.

This post isn’t about how to give or what to give.  It’s more of a recognition that we all give willingly and generously.  Perhaps we need to be asked, nicely of course, but we are all qualified in the art of giving.  If you feel you’ve not practiced this art for a while then have a go – it’s very easy.

“Real generosity toward the future lies in giving all to the present.”

Albert Camus

It’s all about community

In the past week I’ve attended 2 great professional gatherings - the EMCC London Network & the ConnectingHR Unconference.

Although quite different in overall focus, both have challenged the conventions of most professional networks by following 4 simple principles :

• Volunteer led
• The community itself creates the agenda
• The community networks to learn and develop
• Inclusive regardless of professional affiliations or experience

What I’m struck by is the level & quality of engagement such principles creates :

• Communities that welcome and support everyone involved.
• Loads of really great content and ideas shared and discussed.
• Great debate about real issues being experienced by business.
• No grandstanding or ego.  No sales pitches.  No sponsors looking for a financial return.

Isn’t this what we all want from a professional network or conference?  Makes you wonder why we go to all the trouble and expense of some of the more expensive corporate conferences doesn’t it...

Perhaps putting community centre stage is more important to professional development than most organisations realise.  What do you think?