This spring marks the launch of a series of retreats for wonderful women who inspire, engage others, create and facilitate.

The aim of the retreats is to provide a rich environment for reflection, creativity, support, challenge and action. The venue is an inspiring French Domaine in the foothills of the Pyrenees – a nuturing space to be inspired and to create the energy for making new things happen in our lives and work.

Two retreats are taking place in March and are now full but there are more happening later in the year.

If you have an idea you want to develop, or a challenge to address, or an opportunity to capitalise – and want to share your practice and get input from others – you will like our Retreat Programme.

For a long time I’ve noticed how often the effects of environment play out in my coaching practice. Clutter being one factor.Working space another. Creative places another. Oh my list could go on.

Very often we’ve chosen inspiring places to meet for workshops and coaching; Kings Place – a beautiful place for art and music, the Tate Modern, Botanic Gardens at Kew to name but a few. A number of times we’ve coached people while we walked in the countryside and I’ve seen the powerful effect a clear horizon has on someones clarity of thinking.

It’s not surprising that Janie was drawn to the beautiful Le Puget with it’s open spaces, history and views to the Pyrenees. An amazing place brings out the amazing in people. The wisest of most religions have known this, building their sacred places in beautiful spots.

I’ve been noticing people who are incredibly effective and successful and how environment plays out in their live. I’ve also been aware of the physical and environmental signs in someones life when things are going ‘a little off kilter’. It’s interesting and thought provocing.

Emily Anthers wrote an article in the American Scientific about how room design affects your work and mood. In her article she gave the example of Jonas Salk the 1950s prizewinning biologist and doctor who was working on a cure for polio in a dark basement laboratory in Pittsburgh. “His progress was slow, so to clear his head, Salk traveled to Assisi, Italy, where he spent time in a 13th-century monastery, ambling amid its columns and cloistered courtyards. Suddenly, Salk found himself awash in new insights, including the one that would lead to his successful polio vaccine. Salk was convinced he had drawn his inspiration from the contemplative setting. He came to believe so strongly in architecture’s ability to influence the mind that he teamed up with renowned architect Louis Kahn to build the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California., as a scientific facility that would stimulate breakthroughs and encourage creativity”. Now, half a century later she states that “behavioral scientists are giving these hunches an empirical basis. They are unearthing clues about how to design spaces that promote creativity, keep students focused and alert, and lead to relaxation and social intimacy.”

A move of location for me and I’m seeing it for myself! A city of learning, of beautiful buildings, of open spaces. It would be hard not to be inspired but it’s more than the buildings though. It is the people, young, inspiring, learned, creative.  “It’s got to rub off”!

When  I was training with Richard Bolles (Author of What Color is Your Parachute) in 2009, he was 82 then, with a amazing mind and energy. All were inspired by him. His view was he liked young people and questioning thinkers around because he was enthused by them. So in terms of environment; the people you are mixing with are going to have a dramatic impact too. If you want to be more creative get yourself with creative people. If you want to be more positive make sure you are spending time with positive people and if you have a thirst for learning mix with others who want to learn. Think where you might find them. The library, the gallery, local campaigners or the allotment (… if you need more green fingers).

Place and people. People and place. See what you can do to influence those and be amazed by how they will influence you.

Autumn; natures way of clearing out and making way for the new. It’s a good time for us all to clear out the old unuseful or unhelpful things in our life. Things we don’t want, need or love any more. Habbits that are unhelpful or damaging to ourselves or others. Making space to enable something more beautiful, creative or nurturing to take place.

This year has been a big change for me. A move of location and way of living. It started in spring with clearing out and I’m still doing it. It’s funny how the physical process of sorting and clearing has led to a mental clear out too. I have to say it’s not always easy and my stack of stuff still in storage is proof of that, but the car boot sales are in the diary and there’s a lot of joy knowing others can make use of stuff I dont need any more.

What is also nice is finding new uses for old things. In moving I’ve found new life in old furniture and objects. And found new life in me too, new opportunities created. And that is so true in some of the work I’ve been doing with clients recently. Reviewing, resorting and refreshing skills and passions into new work and life opportunities.

It’s never to late to have a sort out, see what you have, re-arrange it and remodel it. And who’s knows what it will lead too. You could be very surprised!

Increasing confidence – how do you do that?

We are interesting beings aren’t we? It is often said that we can become what we do. Or that how we think and behave will have an affect on what we believe about ourselves. Visa versa. What we believe about ourselves and others will affect how we interact with others and how we treat ourselves.

A good example is, and try this one out yourselves, assuming a belief that you can make a positive difference to someones day. Look for ways to give positive comments to others through the day. Commenting on someones quick service, pleasent smile, nice hairstyle, thoughtfulness or saying what you appreciate in others. Doing something like this can brighten the day for others and yourself. If you keep doing this it will start to affect your beliefs about your day, week, … life! Likewise negative actions can also effect your beliefs and attitudes for the worse. Which do you choose?

Lots of people have heard of the ‘behaviour iceberg’, a way of showing how our actions are linked to self esteme, values and beliefs. The model comes from behavioural psychology and is a useful way of seeing how we can change how we feel if we change our actions or visa versa.

What you see – the actions or behaviours of yourself or others (the top visable bit of the iceberg) are just the surface. Underneath them, and driving actions, are thoughts and feelings, attitudes, values and beliefs. The principle is, if you change your beliefs, that will change your outward behaviours and actions. It works the other way too!

Change your regular actions and behaviours and over time that will change your attitudes and beliefs. For example a friend of mine decided to start the day with a five minute reflection on what he was grateful for. After a period of a couple of weeks he noticed how much more contented and peaceful he felt. A client made a committment to do one thing a day that was slightly out of her comfort zone – first speaking up first at a meeting, next taking on an additional responsibility at work, next challenging a friend about letting her down a few times, next signing up for an evening class and so on. Her feedback was that as she did these things her confidence and belief in herself started to increase and change becoming much more positive. Making the committtment to her and to her coach to start with helped to keep the focus and recording the results reinforced the positive effect making sure she took the time to stop and notice the positive results.

Using our philosophy of  ’small steps for big effects’ what small step will change your confidence? Is it a regular thought or a regular action. Walking taller? Saying positive things to others? Noticing the nice things in a day? Smiling at yourself in the mirror in the morning? Writing a daily page in your journal? A regular lunchtime walk?

What will it be? I’m just signing off to think about what mine will be! We would love to hear from you about your results so please write with your experiences.

Yes, its true, spring is upon us. We’ve been joyfully watching the snowdrops for the last few weeks, firstly peeping through the frosty ground and spotlit by sunshine on a cold day. The daffodils are up now and this week have opened and every plant seems to be sprouting buds. Not just the plants! We’re noticing people growing ideas and plans so it must be springtime. We are all venturing out again!

So if you are starting to gather ideas and inspirations check in with yourself. How are you going to nurture them to full bloom? What care do these first buds need and which frosts might you need to protect them from?

Perhaps your career ideas would be nurtured by finding a mentor? Jot down a list of people you respect and admire, they could be people you know and they may be people you don’t yet know. How could you use their advice and support to nurture your plans?