Grant Stanley Consulting

The key to instant popularity? Make people feel good about themselves. When people around you feel good about themselves, they will like you and seek more opportunities to experience the same inner glow. If it is so simple, why don’t more people do it more often?  One simple answer is that we spend too much energy focused on ourselves and our own feelings that we end up ignoring the energy of others, if only by default. Smile   Sincere smiles from the heart trigger warm, reciprocal feelings. Praise Compliment. Appreciate. Be specific and avoid insincere flattery. Look for the best in everyone and in every situation.  Ask questions that show an interest, listen attentively Use their names. Dale Carnegie, author of the perennial best seller, “How to Win Friends & Influence People,” said “a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” Empathise See the world from their perspective. Reflect ...

Each year 2.7 million teaching days are lost through sickness and unauthorised absences. Last year 2,500 teachers took early retirement on grounds of ill health. An average secondary school with an average number of absences could face annual supply teacher costs of up to £150,000. Nationally, the cost is about £300 million of tax payers’ monies. More importantly, classes are disrupted, work programmes interrupted and the remaining staff are overloaded with additional workloads. More than half of teachers took almost two weeks’ worth of sick leave last year citing stress, workload and pupil behaviour. So what can be done to boost attendance? And how do you sort the ill from the ill-intentioned? Now I'm not a Teacher (and never have been), but I have managed over 300 staff and I know from experience that sometimes a small investment, on your part, can have a massive impact.  I have offered a few suggestions below, but I'm sure many of you reading this can offer a lot...

It can be seen from my transition curve that it is important for all of us to understand the impact that change will have on our own personal construct systems; and for us to be able to work through the implications for our self-perception. Any change, no matter how small, has the potential to impact on an individual and may generate conflict between existing values and beliefs and anticipated altered ones. One danger for the individual, team and organisation occurs when an individual persists in operating a set of practices that have been consistently shown to fail (or result in an undesirable consequence) in the past and that do not help extend and elaborate their world-view.  Another danger area is that of denial where people maintain operating as they always have denying that there is any change at all.   Both of these can have detrimental impact on an organisation trying to change the culture and focus of its people . Anxiety The awareness that events l...

Developing and implementing mindfulness education programs in Primary school classrooms has the potential to positively influence the development of children's cognitive, behavioural, and emotional regulatory abilities. There is a study by Exeter University that is the first to examine the feasibility and effectiveness of a Mindfulness program; a mindfulness education program for late Primary school students. The program includes seven key ingredients: relaxation and breathing, positive affirmation, remedial stretch, real-world applications, aromatherapy, yoga and daily practice; all of which worked in partnership to provide students with unique skills to use in their everyday lives. Of most importance was examining the potential impact of teaching mindfulness in a classroom on students' cognitive (e.g., executive functioning), behavioural (e.g., aggression), and emotional (e.g., anxiety) regulatory outcomes. As a function of participating in the program, students in t...

The former Department for Education Permanent Secretary argues that "monolithic" Whitehall departments are too remote from schools to be cost-effective or efficient in managing the system. He also says that given the scale of public finance cuts and the public's anti-politics mood, the state must rethink its relationship with the schools sector - by devolving power and trusting to frontline teachers, Higher Education and industry. I totally agree with this statement.   In a business world, as leaders, we isolate ourselves from the coal face by analysing figures and attending meetings, delegating responsibility for management of productivity to our managers (i.e. Head teachers and Principles).   Politics is no different; they disassociate themselves from the coal face, spend their time crunching numbers and making decisions without thinking about the serious impact that their decisions have on the everyday schools, colleges or academies. There are a number of ...

What is challenging behaviour? Challenging behaviour, in the school context, encompasses behaviour that: • Interferes with the pupil’s own and/or other pupils’ learning; • Disrupts the day to day functioning of the school; • Jeopardises the right of staff and pupils to a safe and orderly environment; • Has a duration, frequency, intensity or persistence that is beyond the normal range that schools tolerate; and • Is less likely to be responsive to the usual range of interventions used by the school to address pupil misbehaviour. A perusal of the behaviour records of most primary schools will provide clear examples of different types of challenging behaviour displayed by children. These include: • Aggressive behaviour, including pushing, punching, kicking, biting, scratching, and threatening behaviour and verbal abuse; • Disruptive behaviour, including screaming, tantrums, non-co-operation, running away; • Destructive behaviour, including destruction ...

Five reasons why emotional intelligence matters right now An emotionally intelligent workforce can help organisations meet many of their current challenges. Managers who are high in EI can help the business drive through change, stimulate innovation and get the best and most inspired performance from its people. Emotional intelligence is however a tool that is under-used and often widely misunderstood within the corporate environment. Managers are suspicious of the very word ‘emotion’ and often feel it has no place in a fast-paced competitive climate where tough decisions are being made on a daily basis. It’s important to recognise however, that being emotionally intelligent isn’t about being emotional – it’s about being able to manage yourself better and get the most out of your team while also paying attention to their welfare and individual needs. Here I share five reasons why emotional intelligence should form the backbone of every manager’s tool-kit: 1. It makes ...

I was recently visiting an established client and saw the opportunity to “Drop In” on a potential client that I had been repeatedly trying to contact.   Why wouldn’t you, I hear you ask?   I approached reception and Introduced myself and asked to speak to the Principle of the College (Let’s call her Bernie for Anonymity sake) and was told to wait in reception.   After 2 minutes of waiting, out storms this petite lady with a decidedly angry expression and the first words out of her mouth were; “I don’t know you, I don’t know your company and I never asked to see you!” Well, the consummate professional that I am, I didn’t balk at this onslaught and asked her for 5 minutes of her time.   It was wasted by the way, but I’ll explain why.   For those who study body language or NLP I could instantly tell that “Bernie” was not giving an inch; with her crossed arms and crossed legs, coupled with the etched scowl.   It turns out that my calls to her off...

For many years I have struggled and beaten off my competition through hard work and failures.   I have read many books and many articles on how to be the best Salesperson or the Best Marketer and have tried implementing all the advice.   I am sick to death of all of these How-To guides and the lack of actual real life examples of when these tips actually worked! A bit about me first so you can understand my frustrations.   I left the British Army in 1995 and having no actual trade to fall back on (well not one that would be of use in Civvy Street) I stumbled into Sales.   I found that I had a natural ability to listen to people, identify opportunities and close business, so did quite well.   For three years I worked for a small Sales and Marketing company that sold products and services on behalf of developing companies.   I managed to save enough money to put myself through University and in 1999 started a 3 year Bachelor of Science degree in Comp...