Leadership

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Rioters storm Capitol after Trump’s inflammatory falsehoods

Alternative realities: Episode 3 in our series on social wellbeing

US 2020 Election

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QAnon candidates for Congress riding the wave of conspiracy theories

Working Voices explores falsehoods that threaten social wellbeing

US 2020 Election

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Social wellbeing under assault from polarised politics

Introducing four films on current turmoil and future solutions

US 2020 Election

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Hidden side of the US election holds secrets that touch us all

Understanding the world’s biggest communication battle

Leadership

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Trump tramples over the rules in chaotic presidential debate

Working Voices CEO Nick Smallman unpicks the confusion

Covid-19 updates

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Coronavirus – a guide to looking after your people

Essential advice from Nick Smallman, CEO of professional skills consultancy Working Voices

Leadership

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Deconstructing Trump – Always Be Closing

Deconstructing Donald Trumps use of a known sales technique called, always be closing in this insightful video. It shows exactly how Trump...

Leadership

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Deconstructing Trump – Social Proof

Deconstruction of how Donald Trump uses social proof and exaggerating “tribe” behaviours to build his political brand. How he uses sales techniques...

Leadership

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Deconstructing Trump – Attack Attack Attack!

Deconstruction of Donald Trumps visual communication and how he uses sales techniques to grow his brand and influence the public opinion. How...

Leadership

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Is there really a difference between Leadership & Management?

There is a real difference between managing and leading. John Kotter, leadership professor at Harvard University, is quoted in The Guardian as...

Leadership

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Delegation – Allow Others To Succeed

I see it time and time again: the often-accidental belief that leadership means control. We’ve all known people who just can’t let...

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Part 1 – Integrity

CEO of Working Voices, Nick Smallman, discusses the importance of integrity in leadership during his Leadership Presence talk at the London Business...

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Part 2 – Knowledge

There are many clever people out there who can’t articulate their knowledge well. Knowledge is nothing without preparation – Nick Smallman explains...

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Part 3 – Decisiveness

Nick Smallman talks at the London Business School about the importance of being able to make decisions when leading, and having the...

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Part 4 – Objectivity

Objectivity can be tough to achieve, but Nick explains why it is essential and how we can come close to analysing and...

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Part 5 – Awareness

Being an aware leader is critical to being able to respond to changes in the business environment. Nick Smallman explains why being...

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Part 6 – Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a direct way to boosting productivity, but it can be difficult to achieve, especially when multi-tasking. Nick Smallman suggests starting...

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Part 7 – Humour

Humour can humanise anyone, but is particularly beneficial for leaders. Nick Smallman believes humour can be powerful, can stimulate creativity, and can...

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Part 8 – Optimism

Nick Smallman talks about the benefits of reasonable optimism, which can lead to better communication ability and and resilience.

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Part 9 – Fluency

Fluency essentially is the ability to know how you’re being perceived and how to control every aspect of your communicative ability. Little...

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Part 10 – Authenticity

Authenticity may be a rare gem, but essential for a real leader operating under their own values. Nick Smallman argues that you...

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Nick’s Ted Talk – The Liberated Personality

Nick Smallman discusses charisma, its downside, and the importance of authenticity.

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The Leaders: Part 6 – Nick Clegg – An effective communicator?

In Part 6 of our series on the leaders contesting the 2015 election, Nick discusses whether Nick Clegg is an effective communicator.

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The Leaders: Part 5 – Natalie Bennett

In Part 5 of our six part series on the leaders contesting the 2015 election, Nick discusses Green leader Natalie Bennett.

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The Leaders: Part 4 – Nicola Sturgeon – A Better Politician Than You Think

In Part 4 of our six part series on the leaders contesting the 2015 election, Nick discusses Nicola Sturgeon.

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The Leaders: Part 3 – Is Nigel Farage an Effective Communicator

In Part 3 of our six part series on the leaders contesting the 2015 election, Nick discusses whether Nigel Farage is an...

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The Leaders: Part 2 – David Cameron’s Hands

In Part 2 of our six part series on the leaders contesting the 2015 election, Nick discusses why David Cameron’s hands will...

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The Leaders: Part 1 – Ed Miliband’s communication style

Nick Smallman discusses Ed Milibands’ communication style.

Personal Impact

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The Value Of Modesty

I’m sure I’m not the only one who remembers the days when the problem with CVs and interviews was that people were...

Leadership

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How to make decisions

Decisions really are the toughest thing a manager or leader must do, on a day-to-day basis. Little decisions are the bread and...

Presenting

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Presenting: How to react when you make a mistake

Its many people’s worst nightmare – making a mistake whilst giving a presentation.

Wellbeing

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Control & Stress

Can you control yourself, when you become stressed? Stress is something almost all of us live with at home or at work,...

Leadership

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The Fear Effect

Fear isn’t something you’ll normally read about on blogs on LinkedIn, or in the sort of books about how to improve leadership...

Networking & Personal Brand

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How to Be a Good Team Player

A successful team isn’t necessary filled with brilliant leaders, nor obedient followers. A team usually needs a good balance of members, full...

Networking & Personal Brand

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Take The Stress Out Of Teamwork

Teamwork can by joyous, but can be very stressful. Sometimes there aren’t clear roles; sometimes there are too many leaders with overlapping...

Networking & Personal Brand

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The Overconfidence Effect

We all know what overconfidence is, and we all probably know people who are often overconfident, but what it the overconfidence effect?

Presenting

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Presentation Preparation versus Presentation Memorisation

Sometimes, a presentation looms and it’s not the worry of presenting well that takes hold, but the worry of remembering what it...

Presenting

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Kinaesthetic Presentations

It’s easy to think that presentations are all about what you do aurally, but anyone familiar with Working Voices no doubt knows...

Personal Impact

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Criticism & Projection

Some people just love being critics don’t they? And whilst there is a great deal of criticism that is extremely valuable, and...

Leadership

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Failure Is Good

I was reading an article on workintellignet.ly about leadership the other day, and it gave three pieces of advice on how companies...

Influencing & Persuasion

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Circles of Influence and Concern

Should I worry about not getting enough sleep, or should I worry about quantative easing?

Culture, Diversity & Ethics

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Now Leaving The Conference Call

Conference calls? There’s no one on earth who likes dialling in, reading an access number the length of a nuclear armament code...

Personal Impact

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Be Prepared

Just like the scouts, you should always be prepared when going in for an interview, talk, when meeting clients, and generally when...

Wellbeing

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Dogs and Stress

It’s important to how we communicate that we learn how to deal with stress, particularly what triggers stress and what works for...

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An Introduction to Working Voices Digital

Working Voices Digital is an innovative product which blends Working Voices’ in the room training and coaching experiences with follow up bite-size,...

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Welcome to Working Voices

Working Voices teaches communication skills to big business. Established in 1998 and based in London, New York and Hong Kong, we field...

Personal Impact

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Psychopaths At Work

Psychopathy is a personality disorder that sees sufferers yield a diminished capacity to empathise with others, or a diminished desire to exercise...

Wellbeing

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Don’t Stress About Stress

Now, if you’re a worrier like so many of us, you may be sick of people telling you that ‘it’s no use...

Networking & Personal Brand

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Rise Above It Like Beckham

David Beckham has an incredible football reputation, but he also has an enduring reputation as being a genuinely nice man. Recently in...

Writing & Productivity

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The Ten Minute Rule

As my colleagues will no doubt agree, I am one of the worst proponents of the idea that things will take ‘only...

Culture, Diversity & Ethics

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Should Managers Befriend Their Staff?

There is an important difference between being friendly with someone (communicating in an open and empathic way), and being friends with someone.

Presenting

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Presenting Articulately

We’ve all been there, or seen someone who’s been there – addressing an audience of people who generally couldn’t care less. Cast...

Leadership

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Having Difficult Conversations

A recent article in the Financial Times got me thinking about how difficult a difficult conversation really can be, especially when such a...

Networking & Personal Brand

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I don’t want to complain, but…

We all know them. They can be funny, irritating, insightful, and they can be like sleeper agents, mild-mannered ninety-five percent of the...

Personal Impact

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Smile and the world does smile back

I was walking around in central London the other day, and I just happened to think of something funny and as I...

Presenting

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Pace yourself: How a little bit of practice can change peoples perception of you

We all know them, people who defy the laws of linguistics by speaking at a rate close to a turboprop engine, who...

Personal Impact

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Blinking – a lot of myths; a few facts

Did you know that women blink on average, twice as frequently as men? And, unlike some other things which are different among...

Wellbeing

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Stress and Communication – Tips to lighten the load

We’re constantly told that we live in stressful times, or that the modern world is more stressful than its ever been, or...

Networking & Personal Brand

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A Rough Guide to Handshaking Today

The handshake is an incredibly recognisable form of greeting, with many variants and many meanings depending on how they’re conducted and their...

Personal Impact

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Blah Blah Blah and other things to listen for

Listening.  It sounds easy doesn’t it?  Someone’s speaks, a sound is made, and you can’t do much but hear that sound. We...

Personal Impact

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Genuine vs Inauthentic – The Importance of Connection

I’m going to talk briefly about the differences between being genuine and being inauthentic, and when we are most likely to lean...

Personal Impact

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Assertion, Aggression, and Submission – getting the balance right

I’m going to briefly outline the differences between assertion, aggression, and submission in terms of communication, as Vickers et al state in...

Presenting

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Staccato speech – trying to create a meaningful flow

Note that I am not talking about the medical definition of staccato speech here. Staccato speech is where you speak in fragments...

Personal Impact

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Emphasis – the most powerful communication tool

How many of us remember that teacher who, whilst knowledgeable about their subject, had the incredible gift of being able to put...

Presenting

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Presentation preparation – the best cure for pre-match nerves

We’ve all be there, a big meeting coming, a presentation in front of co-workers, a special someone who makes your throat close...

Personal Impact

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The eyes have it – why eye contact is so crucial to interpersonal communication

We’ve all heard the expression ‘the eyes are the windows to the soul’, and its true.  The eyes are an incredibly important...

Networking & Personal Brand

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Networking with depth – The difference between acquaintances and friends

I remember coaching someone in Emotional Intelligence some years ago, who was already quite an effective, confident communicator.  They had a good...

Personal Impact

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No means No – powerful ways to get what you want without ruffling feathers

One of the nicest things to say to people is ‘yes’, but as Robert Bolton PhD says in his book ‘People Skills’,...

Personal Impact

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Self Sabotage – Just don’t do it

Today I was thinking about the things people do, consciously or not, that turn others off, or push others away, or simply...

Wellbeing

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Self help – Is it really the route to sustainable confidence and happiness?

Thomas Hobbes was probably on to something when he wrote that life was “nasty, brutish and short”.  Having said that, in his...

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