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Author: Jonathan Bowman-Perks

Global Leadership Coach to: Chairman, CEOs & Executive Boards. Top 2% of Global Podcasters, Leadership Mentor & Team CoachJonathan thrives supporting early growth businesses and Tech Companies; focussing on personal behaviour and future business results. You will gain a high return on investing in your own and your team’s development. His vocation has been shaped by his Father’s heroic leadership role modelling and his untimely death, as a British Royal Navy fast jet Pilot. Jonathan’s life calling is to inspire you and your team to: find and live your “True North”, unlock your potential and make a difference via your business.Leaders say they experience 3 specific benefits from working with Jonathan: they find greater meaning and purpose for themselves and those they lead, they learn to encourage independent, finest thinking and innovation - leading to faster, sustainable business results. Jonathan is a Master Certified Coach (MCC), Virtual Team Facilitator, motivational speaker, philanthropist, pragmatic philosopher and author. As top 2% Globally ranked Podcaster and Key Person of Influence (KPI) he focuses on current and aspiring CEOs, senior executives and their teams in every possible sector. No challenge is too hard.

Great Speaking Tip 1: It’s ALL about them not you

Recently I was a keynote speaker at the Christie’s Global Conference in London. I have since become friends with Matthew Ferrara from the USA who was an engaging and animated speaker at that powerful international real estate conference with leaders from all over the world. So what qualities and skills had he (and other impressive speakers I have observed) developed that you can benefit from? Tip...

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Demoralising Your Team 6: Don’t Listen, Act Too Busy

Don’t your team realise how busy you are? Perhaps they will notice by you rushing around and saying “I’ve only got 5 minutes” and “I must dash, I’m late for a meeting!” maybe they will be in awe, wondering “how do they cope?” Maybe not! Their experience is that you are never listening properly, that you are too caught up in your own world, manically...

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How to Demoralise Your Team 5: Steal their ideas and claim the credit

Brilliant ideas and intellectual property (IP) carry great weight in business. What happens when team members bring cutting edge and outstanding ideas to you? Some leaders try extracting all the IP from their subordinates, promise they will attribute the idea to them and then claim all the glory when presenting it to their own boss. You wouldn’t do that I trust? If you did, then what motivates...

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How to Demoralise your Team 4: Short-term Miopia & Cuts

Clients have reminded me there are numerous ways they and their teams have been demoralised by poor leaders. Here is another. We are clearly moving into a double dip recession in many counties, yet this is a time for stronger leadership. Not the time for cutting leadership as a savings measure! This is not the moment to panic and take knee jerk, short-term perspectives and their ensuing cuts....

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“Everything should be as simple as possible; but no simpler”

This quote is a version of “Occam’s razor”. The idea of simplicity appeals to me greatly. My friend Oliver Johnston has wonderfully refreshing views on “less” and fighting the tyranny of “more”. More is pushed by marketeers and retailers and the ensuing greed may be the basis for the recent riots across the UK. The concept of the razor is to shave away...

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How to Demoralise Your Team 3 – Be a Self-Interested Leader

Go on, you know you want to………. Tell them all just how good you are, what you’ve achieved as a self-made man or woman. In a position like yours you can really look after number 1 and feather your nest. It will be a great opportunity to advance yourself further with your bosses and line yourself up for a pay rise or promotion. Why not use the work of others and indicate...

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Medical problems for Leaders – foretelling the next crisis

A friend of mine is a doctor near where I live in the Square Mile in the City of London. He is seeing disturbing signs with his clients who are leaders from the top global companies based in that powerhouse of a business district. Without breaking medical confidences, there are some clear patterns: 1. The level of medical dysfunction is a replica of 2007-2008 as the global financial crisis was emerging. 2....

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How to Demoralise Your Team 2 – Hoard Information

Imagine a trip into the future……The Doctor has referred you to an unusual Neuro-Surgeon who can show you where information is stored in your brain. The screen in front of you shows areas of information by density – blue for small amounts and red for large hoards of information. She taps the screen revealing a large density of information. Topic labels pop up when she double...

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How to Demoralise Your Team 1 – Micromanage

I thought I would include 4 short blogs on how to demoralise your team. Often it is helpful to point out the toxic things we do, in order to focus on what we should be doing instead. So your Doctor asks “you Micromanage?” He has that resigned look and questions, “how long have you been suffering from this obsession?” Your explanation pours forth: you only do it because the...

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Good to Great to Poor

On my recent summer holiday I was relaxing and reading “Too Big to Fail” the account of the 2008 failure of the banking system. It reminded me of experiences I have had with organisations and teams that have grown to success from mediocrity, only to then slip down into failure. What caused this trend I wondered? It became clear from my first hand experience that it was a total failure...

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A Leaders Time for a Pit Stop?

In this manic business world we choose to live in there is a cost and consequences to the machismo. Having untaken holiday to “carry over to next year” is worn as a badge of pride. You foolishly believe others will buy your lie that “I am so important and irreplaceable!” Wrong. I recently watched the CEO of one of the worlds top firms move on after a public spat over his...

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Happiness, Success or Both? You Choose

Success can be defined as ” getting what you want”, while happiness is defined as “wanting what you already have”. Do you really appreciate what you already have? As an over-anxious over-achiever, I know I have frequently been guilty of not fully appreciating what I have already. Do you fully appreciate the friendships and relationships that you have now? Have you told...

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Are You an Imperfect Leader?

The search for perfection is a sad, lonely and frustrating road to take. As Winston Churchill said “perfection spells paralysis!” How about accepting that we are not perfect leaders? I know I am not. Then people can see both your humanity and humility and appreciate that you are always prepared to ” do your best” for those you lead and you are at times flawed. People respect...

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Swallowing Frogs

“if you have to swallow a frog, then don’t look at it for too long!” The saying relates to tackling your daily priorities (frogs). Deal with the biggest frog first and swallow it. You will end up feeling so much better and becoming a more effective leader. Then handle No 2. Don’t procrastinate, just do it. Good luck Warm Regards Jonathan

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What is Your Leadership Shadow?

As a leader you are under observation 90% of the time. It’s hard to fake it consistently for such lengthy periods of time. That doesn’t stop many charlatans from trying! It is far easier to be authentically yourself and remember people absorb HOW you are being with them, not WHAT you are saying to them. You “emotionally leak” unintentionally and that has a direct impact...

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How Well Do HR Treat Their Own “Resources”?

I am deeply concerned when HR in certain firms treat their own fellow HR employees badly. I have come across too many examples of underhand treatment and sudden removals without chance of improvement. Some love the “putch” approach of removing HR bosses and whole teams associated with them in a couple of days. Others cut staff levels significantly, while simultaneously increasing work...

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Are You Really With Them?

“If you are going to be in the room, then be IN the room. Don’t be mentally somewhere else!” This is a favourite challenge of mine. How often as a leader are you not present or giving respectful attention to those you lead? Worse still perhaps you have caught yourself listening well at work, yet not being present with your partner or children. I confess to resembling that remark,...

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How Brutal is Your Work Environment?

Some work environments are brutal macho bear pits. In such environments alpha males and females slog it out intellectually and emotionally. The cover story is that ” we encourage a competitive winning spirit”. The sub text is “do unto others before they do it to you”. There is so much cutting and thrusting that no one trusts each other. Even a pat on the back is seen as...

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