The HeRO Chronicles

Why Success Can Feel Like a Trap (And How to Break Free)

If you are reading this and it resonates with you, I want you to know that the way you feel is real, it is valid, it is normal and it can come to an end. You are also not unusual.

The Real Reason You're Always Putting Out Fires

You are sick and tired of always having to fight the fires and never getting the chance to do the things you really want to do. It's exhausting. It's unproductive. It's unsatisfying and it's unending.

Have You Found Your Meaning? Plus an Exclusive Offer

Previously, I had prioritised things like status and security in my life. Which led to status and security, but not fulfilment. Other people prioritise money or busyness, only to find that it doesn't lead to the work or life they want.

When You're the First In and the Last Out, What's Left for You?

What is the price of the strife and the self-doubt and the poor health and the missed dinner dates with your spouse and falling asleep with your notepad on your lap and another unfinished boxset winding to a lonely conclusion in the corner.

When the Weight of Every Decision Falls on You

I rarely hear my executive coaching clients say directly that they feel this weight. Rather they say they are worried about burnout, lack resilience, can't make decisions or are neglecting their wellbeing.

You Can Never Lose

But it can be daunting, right? Standing at the bottom of whatever mountain you want to climb, looking up and being uncertain.

The Reason Most People Are Failing

What's the difference between my failure as a surfer and my success at YouTube with a tiny set of subscribers?

Your Past Doesn't Define You

Whatever your thing is, your past doesn't define you; your actions today do.

You Don't Have to Hate Where You Are to Want to Be Better

I can't help myself. I never stop with podcasts, books, YouTube videos and webinars about getting better. You see, this world is my hobby as well as my profession. I love it.

Life Only Rewards Action. Starting is the Perfect Condition.

When is the right time to do something new? Too often we wait for the perfect moment or the right conditions. We'll do it soon. When we've finished something else. When I feel more certain. All of these are forms of resistance. They are just different

Improving Alone Is Hard

If you start to change, many of the people around you, who you would hope would help you, might well do the opposite. Your friends tear you down instead of supporting you.

Be Specifically Ambitious

Channel your inner American and allow yourself to be keen, to be excited about what you could achieve and to believe you can do it. Nobody else is going to have ambition for you.

What's Better Than SMART Goals?

I am not a machine, or a robot. I am creative. I like to explore. I enjoy the journey as much as the destination. I don't like to be constrained.

Find the Largest Load You Can Bear, and Bear it

Growth comes at the point of resistance. Skills come from struggle.

2025's Biggest Leadership Challenge

The biggest problem I see now can be summarised in a single, overused, misunderstood word.

How To Give Things Up

In today's post I am going to tell you my number 1 tip for giving things up. Something you can apply immediately to help you with your New Year's resolutions. Let me explain. You see, I've become good at giving things up in the

Can You Let Go Of Your Story?

Today I want to tell you a story. It's a story about a story I used to tell myself. Here's how it goes.

Try This Powerful Influencing Strategy

The techniques described here are based on the concept of Perceptual Positions which is a useful way of seeing problems from different angles.

Does Your Brain Need A Rest?

Do you ever get that feeling that your brain just isn't working anymore? Maybe if you stop and pay attention you realise that your body isn't as charged up as it might be. Then you go deeper and notice that your spirits are depleted.

A Seasonal Approach to Improvement

Perhaps there is something much deeper at play here. We are not separate from nature. We are not separate from the rest of the forces at play in the universe.

How To Be Happy At Work

Sometimes we find that we get a little lost in our careers. Things change around us. We outgrow our current role, before another becomes available. We experience this as frustration, feeling lost or simply as unhappiness.

These Questions Will Change Your Life

Is growth contained within these words? Is it sent to you from your coach? Is there a font of wisdom from which you can drink?

How To Be More Coach-Like

It takes time, patience and a lot of hard work to become a qualified coach. And even when you've qualified it takes a lot of time, learning and development to improve. But anyone can try the basics if they follow these three steps.

What's Their Hero's Journey?

I was on my way to the supermarket at the end of a long day. It was cold, wet and I wasn't really in the mood to do the weekly shop. Out of nowhere a car zoomed past me, made me swerve and meant that the traffic lights turned red just before I got to them.

What's Your Hero's Journey?

Part of the coaching process is to explore the stories we tell ourselves to see if they serve us. And, if they don't, to see if we can reframe them in a way that gives us strength. The hero's journey can be a powerful way to do that.