We've all heard about great places to work. And also know about some organisations which have a reputation of being more difficult. So how much a company's atmosphere is down to its leaders? And how much do our actions impact those who we work with? In this month's blog we examine how much behaviour affects other people. After all, we are all leaders: we lead our own lives and have influence over our co-wokers, friends and family. Our thoughts, state of mind and actions have an effect on others, not just ourselves.

During my travels over the past months I have watched how people provide their services compared to two or three years ago: at hotel receptions, in aeroplanes and restaurants, etc. I have clearly seen a difference in attitude. So the question I ask myself is : why, today, do people do provide a better service?

We live in turbulent times and face serious issues. The bad news seems to never end with protests in many countries against ruling regimes, monetary crises across the world and world hunger to name but a few of today's problems. How do we face up to these issues and what is our modus operandi in tackling discussions with the most important part of society - our children?

We live in countries where, for most of us, finding food is not a problem. After all, when was the last time we had to worry about a war, climatic conditions or a political/economic situation before searching for food? For us, it's ordinary to eat and be safe every day. It's easy to forget that somewhere in the world people like us, living with their family and children, are hungry. So, what is the role of leadership in relation to world hunger? How leaders connect with this reality and what can we, as individuals, do to help eradicate this problem?

In this month's blog we continue our exploration to understand why people have difficulty with change and how to encourage them to embrace it. Last time we discovered why it is crucial for leaders to explain why change needs to happen. Here we talk about the second area that triggers personal change - trust.

There are many reasons why people don't engage in new initiatives or projects. Sometimes they don't see the value of the project or perhaps they don't recognise the urgency required. Change is usually difficult hence people not liking it plus, if they don't see the benefits, they won't engage. This non co-operation results in barriers being raised such as: no motivation or collaboration, a blame culture, project delay and unsatisfactory performance, which stops projects succeeding. In this month's blog we explore a leader's responsibility to ensure everyone understands why changes are necessary.

Improving productivity, planning and reporting is the goal of many organisations in today's cut-throat world. New IT implementations can greatly assist with these objectives, but one important factor that mustn't be overlooked is ensuring the project continues to support employee communications or inter-personal relationships.

We all know the phrase "time flies when you're having fun". This concept applies just as much to our work as our personal lives. When people find their passion, they don't work; they live through their creativity, choice and energy in their daily activities. I'm happy to say the past five years have been amongst the most creative and positive ones in my life and time has truly flown past.

Why is team cooperation so often difficult to achieve? Sometimes it's because people hide information when things are going wrong, or feel 'knowledge is power' and are reluctant to share it. In other instances individuals prefer to impose their own ideas rather than listening to someone else's opinion. However, the one of the main reasons cooperation fails is because team members, including the leader, focus on telling each other what to do rather than letting people find their own solutions.

How do most of us organise our daily schedule? For many it starts by ploughing through mountains of emails before we run off to urgent meetings, again, scheduled via mail. It sometimes feels we're not in control, as though there was some kind of monster running our life. This ogre is the "email monster". Each one of us endlessly feeds it and, if we're not careful, can end up being a slave to its demands.

We all know communication is the key to human interaction. However, how often in conversation are we waiting for someone to finish talking so we can say what we want? And how much time do we spend listening to the spaces and silences between their statements? These pauses are far more telling than the words spoken as they can reveal a person's feelings and, more importantly, what they're thinking.

What is the most important thing we can do for our children? How can we help them with the skills they need? How does our behaviour affect the legacy we leave? And why our actions are the most important learning tool for the next generation.

Many of us dream of changing our lives and doing something completely different. But the thought of giving up our creature comforts and rejecting the familiar usually puts a halt to our aspirations. To make the transformation, we must adjust our mindset and accept we will have to make sacrifices to achieve our goals. In this blog we explore how we can change our future by making proactive decisions.

We seem to face more complex problems as each year progresses. Amongst other things, today we are confronted by the European Community economic crises, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and the ongoing issues of climate change. The key point is that none of these problems can be solved by any one person or set of people alone. Cooperation is the way to resolve these issues by finding the answers as a team.

Apart from sleeping work is probably the most time-consuming thing we do, with the average person working around 90'000 hours in their lifetime. Therefore, shouldn't we enjoy our job - meeting colleagues whilst being creative and productive? Unfortunately, inter-office rivalries and misunderstanding can lead to huge divisions that disrupt personnel and reduce productivity. In this blog we explore what each of us can do to settle these issues and help everyone move on.

We all have many different needs such as wanting security, love, a sense of belonging or approval from others. When these requirements are met our response is positive, but when they aren't we often react in a negative manner. But what is it that makes us respond badly and why do we frequently blame others for our situation?

Every day we make hundreds of decisions that shape every facet our lives. Each time we act it's with the belief that we are doing the right thing based on the facts available to us. However, if the outcome is not what we expect, often we get angry and blame ourseves for making a mistake.

Many people find the more of something we give, the more of that same thing we will receive in return. In fact, we often gain far more than was initially bestowed in the first place.

Many societies measure success through possession of material items and large bank accounts; but there is much more to life than owning property or having a high-flying carrer. A true sense of fulfilment and achievement is only reached if we discover our real passion and try to live it every day.

We've all made resolutions to change something in our lives, but how do we ensure our dreams succeed and not fail? What is it that makes things happen and how do our thoughts affect the outcome? In this blog we explore the mindset required to ensure success.

When we are faced with a traumatic situation the shock is often horrifying. We become disorientated and it's hard to know where to turn or what to do. But, with the help of those closest to us, we can discover the inner strength to emerge into new, brighter territory.

Without a love of our life or work, it is difficult to achieve goals and motivate others. So how do we develop a passion within ourselves, our lives and our beliefs? And once these are central to our being and way of working, how do they inspire others?

Holidays are for relaxing and dreaming. Our thoughts fly and we tell ourselves, "this year things will change when I get home". However, when we return these ideas are often forgotten and life continues much as before. But why does this happen and how can we make our dreams come true?

Our lives are a process of learning and achievement which, for most of us, starts at home. As we grow older we build on the values and beliefs first assimilated with our own discoveries and achievements. And the most important thing we should do with this knowledge is pass it on to the next generation. After all, children are our legacy.

In times of economic recession an automatic reaction for many of us to stay in our comfort zone and shy away from new adventures. However, a crisis often brings new opportunities and it is down to us to assess these possibilities to affect the changes we want.

A story on the BBC website caught my imagination the other day about a new super-telescope that’s plumbing the depths of the universe as never before. The report states new fibre optics will transmit substantially more data than ever before to give scientists a greater awareness of our universe.