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Five reasons why emotional intelligence is essential in effective leadership

Five reasons why emotional intelligence is essential in effective leadership

Anyone who pretends that emotional intelligence is a ‘soft’ skill has never managed a bullying claim, told an employee that their position is redundant, or been involved in an industrial negotiation. Many management tasks that are essential in today’s workplace require understanding of the emotional issues that employees and teams face. Resolving them takes strength, decisiveness, compassion, strategic thinking and integrity – and the importance of these skills shouldn’t be underestimated. Emotional intelligence can be understood to be the ability to recognise and understand your own feelings and the feelings of others, and to choose how to respond to them. Rutgers psychologist Daniel Goleman named five elements of emotional intelligence back in 1998: Self-awareness; Self-regulation, being the ability to manage constructively…
Dr Neil Thompson
September 13, 2018
Volunteers befriend newly discharged patients to keep them out of hospital

Volunteers befriend newly discharged patients to keep them out of hospital

Joan Jackson, 84, was admitted to Southampton general hospital earlier this month with acute stomach pains. She was diagnosed with gallstones and a liver problem. Three days later she had an operation to remove the blockage. Jackson, who has no family, says she does not know what she would have done without Gary Collett, a volunteer who has been helping her for two and a half years. “He’s the best thing that ever happened to me. If it weren’t for him, all I’d have to wear is one nightie. He brought me extra nighties, did my washing, fetched me things to read. Not many people would do that.” Collett, 59, visits every Tuesday and Thursday – he does shopping and odd bits of DIY,…
Dr Neil Thompson
September 13, 2018
Employee Benefits Live 2018 partners with Mind

Employee Benefits Live 2018 partners with Mind

Employee Benefits Live, Europe’s largest two-day event for benefits and reward professionals, is partnering with mental health charity Mind for its 2018 event at ExCeL London on Tuesday 2 and Wednesday 3 October 2018. The charity will host the event’s first Mental Health Hub, where Mind will offer delegates advice on mental health in the workplace and showcase its new Mental Health at Work Gateway, which is being launched in partnership with The Royal Foundation. Mind currently operates a Workplace Wellbeing programme that aims to help individuals understand and start talking about the costs of neglecting mental wellbeing in the workplace. This includes offering free resources for employers around how to improve both mental wellbeing and employee engagement. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
September 13, 2018
Podcast on the challenges of homelessness to social work

Podcast on the challenges of homelessness to social work

In the first of a two-part podcast, our guests Dr. Heather Larkin and Amanda Aykanian discuss strategies designed to strengthen homeless services and empower the social work profession to assume a lead role in ending homelessness. They describe the National Center for Excellence in Homeless Services, the Center's ties to the Social Work Grand Challenges, and the National Homelessness Social Work Initiative. The episode concludes by exploring misperceptions about homeless social work practice, what it actually means to work in homeless services, and how engaging in this area provides opportunities for interconnectivity across all levels of practice. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
September 13, 2018
Neil Thompson’s Lessons for Living – Balance stability and change

Neil Thompson’s Lessons for Living – Balance stability and change

f life never changed, if everything was the same over and over again, we would be very unhappy, bored and far from contented. Same old same old is not a recipe for a life well lived. However, if everything was constantly changing, we would feel very insecure. Imagine getting up each morning and there is little or nothing you can count on to be the same as it was yesterday. We would no doubt feel disorientated. People often say that the only thing that remains constant is change, as I have argued many times, that is not true. Life is a mixture of changes and constants, but we tend to focus mainly on the changes. This is for three reasons.…
Dr Neil Thompson
August 30, 2018
It’s time to stop parenting your team

It’s time to stop parenting your team

All leaders could benefit from asking questions rather than offering answers, says Tracy Kite As leaders, we want people who come to work, with maturity and awareness, responsibility and accountability. We also want them to be able to make decisions and solve problems and to manage conflict and difficulty as adults. If your team doesn’t do this as a matter of course, could it be that you’re leading with a parenting style? By parenting, I don’t just mean those leadership actions that seek to nurture people and teams; I also include advice, guidance, teaching and problem-solving for others. You might think that these actions (which constitute parenting in the workplace) don’t seem such a bad idea – perhaps we are…
Dr Neil Thompson
August 30, 2018
Why is it so hard to stick to good habits?

Why is it so hard to stick to good habits?

Have you ever set out with the goal of actually sticking to a new behavior … only to find yourself not doing it at all one week later? I know I have. Why is it so hard to form good habits? Why is it so difficult to make consistent change? How can we have the best intentions to become better, and yet still see so little progress?And most importantly, is there anything we can do about it? Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
August 30, 2018
The guide dog that spies on people who ignore its owner

The guide dog that spies on people who ignore its owner

Unable to see the world around him, Amit Patel fitted his guide dog with a camera and set about recording evidence of the discrimination he faced but could not see. "The city is a scary place. It's like someone put you in the middle of Trafalgar Square, turned you in a circle and said 'find your way home'." That is Amit Patel's new reality after he lost his sight unexpectedly in 2012, 18 months after he got married. He now relies on guide dog Kika to get him around the once familiar streets of London. But the footage captured by his canine guide hasn't always shown a city willing to help him. Click here to read more
Dr Neil Thompson
August 30, 2018
Award for North Wales woman leading fight against child slavery

Award for North Wales woman leading fight against child slavery

A dedicated charity worker who plays a vital role in keeping vulnerable children safe from trafficking and exploitation has been honoured by North Wales’s policing chief. Sian Humphreys, who works for Barnardo’s as an independent child trafficking advocate for Wales, has won the Anti-Slavery Champion title in the North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner’s Community Awards. She was presented with the trophy by Commissioner Arfon Jones at a special ceremony at the Celtic Royal Hotel, in Caernarfon, when he paid tribute to the crucial work she carries out working in close partnership with the North Wales Police Modern Slavery Team. They deal with children in danger of being trafficked or who have already been moved in and out of the…
Dr Neil Thompson
August 30, 2018