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telephone 07932 657925
terry@terrymorden.co.uk
www.terrymorden.co.uk

Terry Morden Business Coach
Round Foundry Media Centre
Foundry Street,Leeds,LS11 5QP

RESOURCES & OTHER USEFUL STUFF

I add items to this section every couple of weeks, so come back soon. And, make sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page!

The wisdom of Zen

Zen has been a big influence on me. Sometimes Zen can be infuriatingly obscure and difficult, but it can also be simple and light-hearted. I particularly like Zen stories, they always carry gems of wisdom. Here are two of my favourites; both are taken from Paul Reps’ Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.

Tanzan and Ekido were travelling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was falling. Coming around a bend they met a young woman in a silk kimono and sash, unable to cross the road. ‘Come on girl,’ said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in his arms, he carried her across the mud. Ekido did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he could no longer restrain himself. ‘We monks don’t go near females,’ he told Tanzan, ‘especially not young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?’
‘I left that girl there,’ said Tanzan. ‘Are you still carrying her?’

A lord asked Takuan, a Zen teacher, to suggest how he might pass the time. He felt his days very long attending his office and sitting stiffly to receive the homage of others. Takuan wrote eight Chinese characters and gave them to the man:

Not twice this day
Inch time foot gem.

This day will not come again.
Each minute is worth a priceless gem.

Ten characteristics of a high-performance team

Get these right and your team will out-perform HSBC and Manchester United!

1. A shared vision, values and goals
2. A leader that can delegate and motivate
3. The right mix of skills
4. Time to develop and grow
5. Members that know their roles and responsibilities
6. Good channels of communication
7. Members that know their own and their colleagues' strengths
8. Clear lines of authority and decision making
9. Team members with good communication skills
10. Ways of celebrating and rewarding success

Twelve essentials for high-performance working

Get these right and you'll rule the world!

1. Have a clear vision and purpose
2. Focus on goals
3. Know your values and live by them
4. Prioritise and use time effectively
5. Feel motivated and achieve job satisfaction
6. Be an inspirational leader and an effective manager
7. Have good communication skills
8. Build productive relationships
9. Be a team player
10. Make great decisions
11. Respond purposefully to opportunities and positively to threats
12. Achieve work/life balance

Five Question Framework

This is one of my favourite coaching tools. It's a simple five
step process that can be used in a great many situations; it's
especially good for tackling problems and keeping up a sense
of optimism. At it's heart are five simple questions - stick to the
order and ask them (and answer them) the next time you face
a challenge.

One - what's working?
Two - why is it working?
Three - where do we want to be?
Four - what needs tweaking?
Five - what resources do we need?

For more information check out www.cpmpublishing.com

Asset-based Thinking

I love the optimism and positiveness of this. Asset-based thinking
focuses on opportunities rather than problems, strengths rather
than weaknesses, what can be done instead of what can't.

Some asset-based responses:

What is possible? (rather than - That's impossible.)
What's done is done. Move on. (rather than - Whose fault is that?)
What am I learning? (rather than - What's wrong with me?)
How can I get around this? (rather than - That'll never change.)
What makes him tick? (rather than - He's out of his mind.)

For more information check out www.assetbasedthinking.com
(it's American, so try to see through the slight cheesiness!)