Dinner party conversations can either make or break an evening. Arguably, it is equally (or more) important than the food itself in contributing to the success of the event. So how do you know if you are a good dinner party guest? Nobody likes to sit with a nonstop talker who monopolises every conversation. Equally, it is just as bad to sit next to someone who has nothing to say and you feel like you’re pulling...

Do you work with a difficult boss? Is your boss making your life miserable at work? Have you tried to address certain issues to no avail? Has the time come to escalate matters and talk to their boss or HR? These conversations are never easy and can cause anxiety so here are a few ideas to try to minimise your distress. Before engaging in this type of conversation, ask yourself the following: - Can...

The party season is upon us. With this comes meeting new people or old friends. Usually these conversations will start with standard and harmless chit chat and pleasantries. Then, before you know it, the interrogation starts. We have all been single at some stage, whether we like it or not. So how do we handle intrusions wanting to pry into our personal lives? For those of you non single people out there, here...

In general, most people know the basic rules for conducting a good interview such as dress appropriately, be punctual, sit up straight, be confident and focus on your expertise. However, what about what not to say? You may have a brilliant interview and say one major no-no which blows your chances. Many candidates get nervous at the thought of going for a job interview. To relax the tension, remember that during...

Our name is hard wired in our subconscious in such a way that it acts as an immediate trigger to get our attention. You will respond to the sound of your name more easily than you will say to the word “banana”. Despite this, according to Freud, “a person’s name is the single context of human memory most apt to be forgotten”. Remembering someone’s name is incredibly useful and important in both social...

Whatever the nature of your business, chances are you have to interact with clients at some stage. Whether you are selling a product or service you will need to establish trust with customers in order to do business. There are however, simple harmless words that can damage this trust. Minimal changes in your deliberate choice of words can have a huge impact on your results. If we use a backwards approach and...

This is the best blog you have ever read. Wow! What a statement. It will be quite difficult to live up to it. In addition to overstating my writing abilities, it assumes I know exactly what else you have read which is impossible. Essentially, I am destined to fail and disappoint you. So, why would I set your expectations so high right from the start? Surely I am setting myself up for failure. If you have read...

Do you spend your days wishing your week away and waiting for the weekend? You probably spend at least 40 hours a week at work. If most of this time is spent in a gloomy and solemn mood, except for that one hour before you go home on a Friday, it is time to do something about it. There are a number of factors that can contribute to a downbeat environment at work. I have written about how to handle Bad Bosses...

Does your boss motivate you? If you answered yes, then consider yourself to be one of the lucky few. Do you think your boss is arrogant, lazy, incompetent or plain useless? If this is your reality, you may find some consolation in knowing that unfortunately you are not alone. Having a bad boss is a major reason why many people leave their jobs. We are all different and respond to a variety of stimuli and management...

Difficult conversations are typically those that we know we should have yet keep putting off. They range from having to remind your best friend about the money they owe you, or telling your other half that you don’t want to have dinner with their family every weekend or trying to tell your colleague that they have bad breath. Why do we put these conversations off? We dread the reaction, we don’t...