Encouraging Potential

22/10/2026

I really like this TED talk from Anne Morriss - particularly the challenge to the 'received wisdom' (hmmm ...) of "move fast & break things". The talk explains that true leaders don’t move fast & break things, they move fast & FIX things – taking account of looking after each other, not assuming progress means inevitable pain.

https://vist.ly/5pipy

Here's my synopsis of Anne's 5 steps:

1) Identify the real problem - strip out the assumptions, look at it from other perspectives, turn it into a question, and talk to the people impacted. Get brave and ask the unaskable questions, the ones you're not going to enjoy the answers.

2) Solve for trust - ask how can you build more trust than before, and consider your part in creating the problem.

3) Make new friends - find people with a different viewpoint, make a conscious choice to seek out people different to you, and get their take on it.

4) Tell a good story - make the change make sense to others, particularly respect the past (it's got them where they are, not all bad), acknowledge the present (why things needs to change), enrol into the future vision.

5) Go as fast as you can - clear administrative blocks, and let people know you're taking it seriously, because, as she says: urgency releases energy.

𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀.

In a practical, playful talk, leadership visionary Anne Morriss reinvents the playbook for how to lead through change -- with a radical, one-week plan to build trust and fix problems by following a step per day.

26/05/2026

Here's a question you can ask yourself if you want work to be something fulfilling and meaningful for you. It doesn't matter whether you're an innovator, a producer, a deliverer, or an administrator, whatever you do every working day will be changing the world, a little, or a lot.

How does your work improve things? I'd really love to know.

21/05/2026

Is work not quite all it's supposed to be for you? Maybe I can help ...

20/05/2026

I loved appearing on Katisha Hyland's "The Producers" podcast. Our conversation ranged far and wide, from the similarity between the roles of account managers (my old corporate role) and producers (Katisha's genius), through to how make work better than just what I call 'tolerably s**t'.

Andrew Horder from Encouraging Potential joins Tish for an episode of The Producers Network all about extracting the best from your employees, empowering you...

15/04/2026

If you're responsible for organisational culture, wellbeing or employee engagement, this physical summit is definitely worth a look: https://cib.global/human-workplace-summit/

20/03/2026

Anyone who wants to make a difference in the world of work needs to read this Substack article *written by AI*.

After scaring the pants off you, it gives some very good advice at the end. The sort of advice us coaches and consultants have been sharing for years, but now backed up by what happens if you don't - according to the AI-monster itself.

In that, it's a great example of what it recommends: use your time NOW to build something the inexorable advance of AI makes more powerful instead of less necessary.

The 3-year countdown starts today

24/12/2025

Wishing everyone a very Happy Christmas!

Please click the image to view your ecard!

19/07/2025

It's a sad indictment of the western view of work that so many people are commenting along the lines of "bring it on" to this approach to employee management.

I invite you to think about this: what would it take for losing the opportunity to contribute to be the worst thing that could happen to you at work?

In Japan, there's a subtle but widespread workplace practice designed to quietly push unwanted employees out the door—known informally as becoming a "window sitter."

Employees suddenly find themselves receiving no work, assignments, or invitations to meetings.

They're effectively frozen out, isolated from colleagues, and left feeling useless and undervalued.

This passive-aggressive tactic aims to make the employee voluntarily resign due to discomfort and lack of purpose.

Since companies rarely fire staff directly, this approach helps maintain the company's reputation and avoids legal complications.

Although controversial, the practice persists, often leaving foreign employees puzzled and distressed.

For those unaware, suddenly being ignored or sidelined could indicate you're being encouraged to leave.

Understanding this practice can help foreigners in Japan recognize the signs early and decide on their next steps.

02/02/2025

I always like to download the monthly calendars from Action for Happiness - this month's is "Friendly February" Action for Happiness

Daily actions to help you connect with others and spread kindness.

31/01/2025

I really can't believe we haven't managed to move on from what Dave Coplin was talking about ELEVEN YEARS ago!

Dave Coplin, Chief Envisioning Officer at Microsoft, imagines what might be possible if more organisations embraced the full, empowering potential of technol...