People skills++

More people skills top tips

• Ban “but” for a day(11 November 2025)
• Acknowledge the opportunity cost(4 November 2025)
• Decline meetings that fail the test(28 October 2025)
• Use the Rule of Three to persuade(21 October 2025)
• Start nodding to build trust(14 October 2025)
• Use pre-work to boost commitment(7 October 2025)
• Offer choice to gain commitment(30 September 2025)
• “Tell me more”(23 September 2025)
• Cancel that meeting(16 September 2025)
• Stop solving their problems(9 September 2025)
• Don’t make the mistake of answering the question(2 September 2025)
• Be pessimistic first(26 August 2025)
• Treat people how they want to be treated(19 August 2025)
• Let them finish. Really finish.(12 August 2025)
• Praise five times more than you criticise(5 August 2025)
• Say it again. And again.(29 July 2025)
• Use tension as a tool, not a threat(22 July 2025)
• Align on the goal before solving the problem(15 July 2025)
• Make others feel psychologically safe(8 July 2025)
• Get to the nugget(1 July 2025)
• Co-create solutions (and don’t impose them)(24 June 2025)
• Use the 3-second rule to stay calm(17 June 2025)
• Set boundaries without sounding negative(10 June 2025)
• Turn resistance into collaboration(3 June 2025)
• Say what you mean in fewer words(27 May 2025)
• Lead your peers without acting like a boss(20 May 2025)
• Get instant clarity in any meeting(13 May 2025)
• Ask for what you need more effectively(6 May 2025)
• Influence people with one simple change(29 April 2025)
• Coach someone using just three words(22 April 2025)
• Call out the elephant in the room(15 April 2025)
• End on a high(8 April 2025)
• Stay calm when frustrated(1 April 2025)
• Your calendar is a negotiation(25 March 2025)
• Push back without sounding difficult(18 March 2025)
• People remember how you make them feel(11 March 2025)
• Your energy is contagious(4 March 2025)
• Be more persuasive in meetings(18 February 2025)
• Take a moment before you reply(11 February 2025)
• Stop trying to win the argument(4 February 2025)
• Give feedback that doesn’t sting(28 January 2025)
• Leave space for silence(21 January 2025)
• Respond with curiosity, not judgement(14 January 2025)
• Ask this one question for your growth(7 January 2025)
• Make your meetings matter(10 December 2024)
• Use empathy to resolve tension(3 December 2024)
• Celebrate small wins(26 November 2024)
• Make decisions together(19 November 2024)
• Ditch the “Why” questions(12 November 2024)
• Grant autonomy to everyone around you(5 November 2024)
• Gain instant clarity(29 October 2024)
• Manage up with confidence(22 October 2024)
• Encourage constructive dissent(15 October 2024)
• Remember the power of a well-timed pause(8 October 2024)
• Listen like a leader(1 October 2024)
• Boost morale with small gestures(24 September 2024)
• Embrace conflict(17 September 2024)
• Start with empathy(10 September 2024)
• Do lots of small check-ins(3 September 2024)
• Make meetings interactive(27 August 2024)
• Make a great first impression virtually(20 August 2024)
• Be strong. Be assertive.(13 August 2024)
• Reframe to bounce back stronger(6 August 2024)
• Energise your meetings from the start(30 July 2024)
• Think about your target outcome(23 July 2024)
• Embrace vulnerability(16 July 2024)
• Have strong opinions, weakly held(9 July 2024)
• Create psychological safety for everyone(2 July 2024)
• Tell more stories(25 June 2024)
• Have a little patience(18 June 2024)
• Tell people why you want to meet(11 June 2024)
• Stop being nice and start being kind(4 June 2024)
• Reflect back what was said to you(28 May 2024)
• Schedule in downtime(21 May 2024)
• Focus on your strengths(14 May 2024)
• Remove sources of dissatisfaction(7 May 2024)
• Doing great work isn’t enough(30 April 2024)
• Be an exemplar(23 April 2024)
• Say No without saying “No”(16 April 2024)
• Allow people to go off-topic(9 April 2024)
• Be a leader to everyone you work with(2 April 2024)
• Have them take an extreme viewpoint(26 March 2024)
• Don’t leave people hanging(19 March 2024)
• Have breaks in the middle of meetings(12 March 2024)
• Focus on meeting actions(5 March 2024)
• Stop solving problems(27 February 2024)
• Stop negatively impacting teammates(20 February 2024)
• Make your meetings more inclusive(13 February 2024)
• Aim for a win-win outcome(6 February 2024)
• Lead with empathy(30 January 2024)
• Praise the effort and intentions(23 January 2024)
• Stop responding to people’s questions(16 January 2024)
• Stop telling people what to do(9 January 2024)
• Share how much effort you’ve made(12 December 2023)
• Stop sending out so many messages(5 December 2023)
• Get the most influential person onboard(28 November 2023)
• Do you really need a meeting?(21 November 2023)
• People that talk about irrelevant things(14 November 2023)
• How to uncover the truth(7 November 2023)
• You need to grab people’s attention(31 October 2023)
• Invite the minimum number of people(24 October 2023)
• Why are some people so rude?(17 October 2023)
• Are you actually listening?(10 October 2023)
• The door-in-your-face technique(3 October 2023)
• Make your meetings win-win(26 September 2023)
• Start your opinions with ‘I’(19 September 2023)
• Have a high energy start(12 September 2023)
• Doing amazing work isn’t enough(5 September 2023)
• Define the target outcome first(29 August 2023)
• Bad meeting = bad reputation(22 August 2023)
• Listen first, speak second(15 August 2023)
• People might think you don’t care(8 August 2023)
• First impressions really count(1 August 2023)
• Say yes and then say no(25 July 2023)
• Do you ever ask permission?(18 July 2023)
• Build better rapport(11 July 2023)
• Show some empathy(4 July 2023)
• Define your target outcome upfront(27 June 2023)
• Stop being late for meetings(20 June 2023)
• You might be praising people for the wrong thing(13 June 2023)
• The ideal praise-to-criticism ratio is…(6 June 2023)
• Let’s make this No But Day(30 May 2023)
• What do you think?(23 May 2023)
• Think about the opportunity cost(16 May 2023)
• Start actively listening(9 May 2023)
• Give me some work to do(2 May 2023)
• It’s your choice to open this email(25 April 2023)
• Would you condone that from your death bed?(18 April 2023)
• Go to fewer meetings(11 April 2023)
• Three is the magic number(4 April 2023)
• Stop asking so many questions(28 March 2023)
• Start nodding(21 March 2023)
• Remember to pass the Opposite Test(14 March 2023)
• Make it the best thing ever(7 March 2023)
• Storytelling does things to our brains(28 February 2023)
• Conflict is great(21 February 2023)
• Remember the Ben Franklin Effect(14 February 2023)
• You should cancel your next meeting(7 February 2023)
• Imagine you’re hosting a queen or king(31 January 2023)
• You probably need to show more leadership(24 January 2023)
• Welcome(20 January 2023)
• The opposite of agreeing is…(17 January 2023)
• Boost your people skills capability(10 January 2023)
• Stop solving people’s problems(13 December 2022)
• Stop answering people’s questions(6 December 2022)
• Tell me why we’re meeting(29 November 2022)
• Stop being so optimistic(22 November 2022)
• Don’t treat others how you want to be treated(15 November 2022)
• Assume the best of intentions(8 November 2022)
• Let them drain their fishbowl(1 November 2022)
• The ideal praise to criticism ratio is 5:1(25 October 2022)
• You need to say things 10-20 times(18 October 2022)
• Decline meetings that fail the test (copy 01)(1 January 1970)