http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk The latest blog posts from Dianne Lowther and Brilliant Minds en-us http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/communication-at-work Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT Communication is probably one of the most important parts of most people's work. It's also one of the hardest things to get right in a big organisation. When I go into companies there are two things that I often hear people complaining about. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/communication-at-work http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/just-do-it Mon, 14 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT Here’s a simple way to get yourself motivated on Monday morning – or any time. This process is useful for focusing your energy and attention on a specific task. It can help you overcome habits of procrastination and also to motivate you to do something that you do not enjoy. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/just-do-it http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/soft-skills-for-it Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT I recently saw this question posted on LinkedIn and it got me thinking... http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/soft-skills-for-it http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/mind-body-and-business Wed, 02 May 2012 00:00:00 GMT There is a basic principle of NLP that says ‘the mind and the body are all one system’.  So as well as taking care of your mindset, how about taking care of your body? http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/mind-body-and-business http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/the-myth-of-positive-thinking Mon, 30 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT The Right Mindset. The Right Attitude. The Right Approach. Most successful business people and entrepreneurs agree that how you think is a crucial factor in whether your business is a fantastic money-making, self-esteem-boosting, headline-worthy success or an embarrassing, money-draining and demoralising failure. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/the-myth-of-positive-thinking http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-being-at-cause Wed, 18 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT If you've read any books about NLP or you've attended a seminar or training programme, you've probably heard the phrase 'Being at cause'. And I hope that you've picked up that that's a desirable state to be in. There are, however, some misunderstandings about what it really means and I thought it might be worthwhile just clarifying what I think it means and how it can be useful. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-being-at-cause http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/what-else-can-you-do Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT I was reading a post on Bob Howard-Spink’s blog in which he compares to-do lists with Leonardo Da Vinci and suggests that as well as a ‘to-do’ list, we can all benefit from having a ‘things I’ve done’ list. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/what-else-can-you-do http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/here-it-is Wed, 11 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT “Here it is”.  My husband interrupted my impatient scanning of the shelves in front of me and pressed a small book into my hands. I stared. He really had found it. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/here-it-is http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-why-do-we-teach-nlp-to-business-leaders Tue, 03 Apr 2012 00:00:00 GMT One of the questions I often get asked is why do we teach NLP to business leaders? Lots of people have heard of NLP. Sometimes when I meet someone socially and they ask what I do for a living, when I tell them what I do - that I teach NLP to business leaders - they say 'but isn't NLP about psychotherapy and stuff like that? http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-why-do-we-teach-nlp-to-business-leaders http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/creating-your-own-job-role Wed, 28 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT I often get into dialogue with people on the subject of how they can create, understand, modify or evolve their job role. Particularly when people have moved into a new role or their existing role has changed substantially, they can find it quite a challenge to really get to grips with what it is they have to ‘do’ in order to be successful. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/creating-your-own-job-role http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-do-you-ever-get-the-chance-to-work-from-home Wed, 21 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT If you do, then you might be interested to know that some people work really well from home and other people it's just not the right choice at all. You may already know which category you come into. But interestingly there is a good reason for it and there's also a very simple way to diagnose how do people respond to working on their own, do they work well at home, or is there a better solution for them in terms of the working environment? http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-do-you-ever-get-the-chance-to-work-from-home http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/what-can-we-learn-from-vince-cable Tue, 13 Mar 2012 00:00:00 GMT Last week the newspapers in the UK were full of the latest story about Vince Cable, the Business Secretary. A document had been ‘leaked’ to the Press, in which Mr Cable criticised the government for having ‘no vision’ for business. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/what-can-we-learn-from-vince-cable http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-in-praise-of-big-business Mon, 20 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT I don't know if you've been following the news recently about what's been going on at RBS... http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-in-praise-of-big-business http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-6x6-leadership-challenge-preview Wed, 11 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT I want to get you thinking differently! http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/video-6x6-leadership-challenge-preview http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/audio-how-to-blow-your-own-trumpet Wed, 04 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT If your goals for 2012 include a promotion, a new role or new business then you’ll need to be able to sell yourself effectively. Lots of people dislike 'blowing their own trumpet’ because they’re afraid of seeming boastful, big-headed or boring. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/audio-how-to-blow-your-own-trumpet http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/mindset-myth Tue, 20 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT Work on your mindset, that’s what everyone, including me, keeps on saying. Work on your mindset. But actually it’s a myth. It’s hard to work on your mindset, because mindset is not a single thing. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/mindset-myth http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/the-danger-of-mixed-messages Mon, 12 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT “Be yourself, everyone else is taken” is a slogan that made me smile recently. It’s good advice. Trying to be something that you’re not usually results in you giving out mixed messages and either confusing other people or leaving them slightly mistrustful of you. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/the-danger-of-mixed-messages http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/is-the-right-mindset-enough Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT I was watching the BBC documentary about Money and Wealth training seminars last night. It was carefully put together to leave the viewer in no doubt that the only people getting rich from wealth training are the people providing the training. There was lots of footage that made me squirm, of young people who had gone into debt to attend the seminars, totally ‘believed’ that they were going to get rich and yet had not made a single penny. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/is-the-right-mindset-enough http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/if-a-things-worth-doing Thu, 03 Nov 2011 00:00:00 GMT Someone once asked me, “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?” It’s a great question and for someone with a fear of failure it can open up possibilities that might not have previously been accessible to conscious awareness. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/if-a-things-worth-doing http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/holiday-musings Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT I’m on holiday in Thailand as I write this. I’ve been out for an early morning walk on the beach with my husband. Each time we do this, we remark on how the tide has swept the sand around since yesterday. Each day the beach looks slightly different. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/holiday-musings http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/get-it-done Wed, 12 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT Do you have anything on your ‘to do’ list that you just can’t seem to get around to doing? Here is a method to get it done. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/get-it-done http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/what-did-you-say Wed, 07 Sep 2011 00:00:00 GMT Fresh from Shelle Rose Charvet’s ‘Words that Change Minds’ Consultant/Trainer programme, where I’d spent two weeks focusing on specific patterns in language and practicing precise communication, I needed to visit my local branch of Halfords. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/what-did-you-say http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/who-needs-a-pa--i-do Mon, 11 Jul 2011 00:00:00 GMT It’s one of life’s little ironies that I left my last job, as a consultant, and set up my own business partly so that I could manage my own diary. I was really tired of not being able to say no to long-distance travel back-to-back with demanding assignments and couldn’t commit to evening social events more than a day or two in advance unless I took some of my annual leave. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/who-needs-a-pa--i-do http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/the-technology-of-the-21st-century-is-the-technology-of-the-mind Sun, 26 Jun 2011 00:00:00 GMT You’ve probably seen that statement 'the technology of the 21st Century is the technology of the mind' on the Brilliant Minds website or at the bottom of some of my emails. Have you ever wondered what I mean by it? http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/the-technology-of-the-21st-century-is-the-technology-of-the-mind http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/blog-post Fri, 13 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT One of the things I've noticed about practicing NLP in daily life, is that it tends to make it easier for me to maintain a 'live and let live' attitude to other people's behaviour and opinions. http://www.brilliantminds.co.uk/news/blog-post