John's Blog

  5 Bold Ways to Supercharge Your Self-Development Are you stuck in a cycle of "almost"? Almost reaching your goals. Almost feeling fulfilled. Almost living your dream life.  Self-development isn’t a luxury; it’s a necessity. And the most successful people out there aren’t just lucky—they’re intentional. If you are going to reach beyond "almost," you will have to be deliberate in your growth.  Here are five bold, unorthodox ways to elevate yourself and unleash the version of you the world’s been waiting for. 1. Stop Reading, Start Doing Books, podcasts, and courses are great, but they can become your comfort zone. Are you hiding behind learning instead of living? The Challenge: Pick one concept you’ve been absorbing—just one—and act on it for a week. Post about your progress online to stay accountable. 2. Audit Your Circle Look around. Are the people in your life helping you grow or holding you back? It’s time to assess your relationships with brutal honest...

  The Power of Authenticity in Personal Development In the journey of personal development, one of the most transformative qualities you can cultivate is authenticity.  What does it mean to be authentic, and how does it fuel your growth? For beginners stepping into the world of self-improvement, understanding and embracing authenticity can unlock a path to true fulfilment and self-awareness. Why Authenticity Matters in Personal Development Being authentic means staying true to who you are—your values, beliefs, and feelings—even in the face of societal pressures or expectations.  It’s about showing up as your genuine self in every aspect of your life.  Here’s how authenticity can supercharge your personal development: Clarity of Purpose : Authenticity helps you align your actions with your true desires, eliminating confusion about what you want to achieve. Improved Relationships : When you’re genuine, you attract people who resonate with your true self, fostering deep...

Making decisions can be tough. From small decisions, such as what to have for breakfast, to life-changing decisions, like which career path to take or whether to start a family, making choices can be stressful. Our choices can have a significant impact on our lives, and it’s essential to make informed and thoughtful decisions that align with our values and beliefs. One way to make decision-making easier is by using your values as a guide. What are values? Values are the ethical and moral principles that an individual deems important and holds dear. They influence the decision-making process and shape the behaviours and actions of individuals. Values can be intrinsic, meaning they are an inherent part of an individual's personality, or they can be learned and developed through personal experiences and cultural, societal, or religious influences. Values are an essential aspect of an individual's identity and play a crucial role in guiding decision-making and behaviour. Identifyin...

Entrepreneur, manager, and politician are roles that each require it's own set of unique skills, but does not guarantee that the title holder is a leader.  A person gets the title of leader by way of birthing a vision. The leader was, is, and always will be the vision owner and curator, responsible for taking it from inception to completion, with the effective and efficient help of a team.  Anyone that feels strongly enough to act on a vision can lead. Having a vision obviously doesn't mean the person will be a good leader. Like any skill, leadership is loaded with various principles, strategies, and techniques, requiring study and practice to master.  Many visions lay dormant on the shelf of "one day," collecting dust. The owners of the " vision-in-storage" become reluctant to dust the vision off and make it happen, because they feel unworthy of the leader position.  Instead of letting your vision decay into "regret," equip yourself wi...

To you, one of God's unique little kids, I want to say that different does not mean seperate.  Often people sitting on the fringes of society feel disconnected from the rest of the world. They sit on the fringe because they are different, and others draw away. These are people that dont blindly accept tradition as truth, unwilling to conform just for the sake of agreement. These oddballs look at life from an angle that most ... well, let's just say, that most have never considered.  Fringe life is a lonely and a trying place. Even though most fringe-sitters have friends, it's a meeting-by-appointment arrangement, as the friends dont really want to expose others to the one-of-a-kind perspectives. So, "fringees" dont usually get invited to the big get-togethers, and live in solitude, sometimes by choice, sometimes not.  Take courage you special biscuits, I want to tell you something. The world in which we live is shaped by the odd dreams of artists and inv...

So, I believe my mission in life is to play the role of a teaspoon.  Yes, you read that correctly. Why a teaspoon, you ask. When making a cup of coffee, you put all the ingredients in the cup, and then you add the hot water.   Do you drink it straight away? No, of course not. You take a teaspoon and you stir. The ingredients need to be mixed properly, giving a full flavoured experience all the way to the bottom of the cup.   I believe that every person, including you, has everything necessary for life and leadership already in their cup. What's needed is for someone to stir your capacity, so that you realise the fullness of who you really are, and to permeate you with falvourful life and leadership throughout your cup.   My message as the teaspoon is to stir your potential into track record. Although the focus of this blog, and my message, is aimed at leadership development - leadership and personal development are synonymous.   The leader must answ...

In the dying seconds of the game, the team's star player does a twist, fooling the opponent. The star sidesteps another challenger, and with a flourish - scores again!    In the after-game interview, the star player tells how being in the "zone" gave them "move-prediction" powers, supported by super strength and stamina, making winning a sure thing.     As "fans" we swoon at the thought of our star's abilities on the field, and at their charisma off it.    With glittery admiration we wish, oh, we so wish we were them for a day! Would you want to have the skills and abilities of a great sportsman or woman for a day?    Would you like to jog onto the pitch, walk into the office, or swagger into the arena, knowing you were empowered with your hero's abilities, skills, or focus? Of course you would! We all would like some hero's ability in one form or another! That's not the question we should be asking. The real question is: wh...

Truth and Deception may be opposites on the scale of "desirable," but they are grossly enmeshed by a great equalizer called 'self.'     Self Deception is the two-faced enemy of our success. The first face is deception that we are not 'good enough.' We conjure up lies about our worth that works magic to keep us dumb, pathetic, and purposeless.     Once we break free from the depressing shackles of self doubt, by realising the Sea of Potential we possess is enough to overcome any limitation - we suddenly meet the second face of Self Deception.     This cunning enemy comes as our 'friend', stroking our ego and allowing us to wallow is self glorification, believing we are greater than we actually are.     In this delusion of Grandeur, we adopt self -awarded titles reserved for recognition by others, like 'leader' or 'influencer', which inflate our arrogance and sharpens the axe of pride that will eventually cut us down to size....

Why are we really here? To pay tax and then die?   Goodness! I hope there is a lot more to our existence on this odd little rock than death and taxes.     I used to observe those people that had clicked into a sense of their purpose with wonder.  Trying to find the common key to unlock my own destiny, I noted that just as many of the purposeful where devotees to some form of religion as those that were not. Spirituality did not seem to be a factor in discovering purpose.    A factor that did separate the purposeful from the rest was the intense sense of self they had.    The purposeful have a clear image of who they are, and embrace it without remorse, and without arrogance. Identifying their talents and abilities, the purposeful unashamesly pursue excellence, allowing their gifts and talents to carry them to the top of their field... and in no uncertain terms - to make a shit load of money in the process.    In contrast,...

Don't busy yourself with the "how" of your success, rather invest in the details of "what". And before you tell me you need the "how" to get results, do something for me... make your left hand into a duck-face, and let it quack 3 or 4 times. Now, how did you do that?  Yes yes, you can tell me about nerves and messages, and muscle control. .. but, howwwwww? You don't know, do you?  You just swallowed ... how? Blinked, breathed, and farted... how? How did you do these things? You maybe know the biology of the mechanism, but how? Ninety percent of what we do daily is handled by our subconscious mind. We merely think about the "outcome" or result, and our unconscious mind sets about implementing systems to achieve that result.  Why can't we use this efficient system to achieve our life goals? 🤷‍♂️ Well, that's the point! You can and should allow this mechanism to help achieve all that you want in life.  How?  Use ...

Wait now, Sausage. Let's just unravel this quickly. When peering into the mirror,  we were taught to look beyond the reflection, to deep, deep within the soul of the face staring back. We were taught to search in ourselves what we could become. This lesson then forged a path of constant change for us. We nip, tuck, chisel and chop our way through life to reveal the gem we once saw, hidden in the depths of our reflection. In the process, we sacrifice our true identity and align with "Human Becomings". We ought to look in the mirror and see who we really are, walk away and live up to that image - a Human Being - a true expression of a perfect creation, called you.

The Huntsman Example “The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.”                    Ray Kroc People knew what to expect from the Huntsman as he had arranged many hunts before. He was a well-organised hunter and expected discipline within the rider’s ranks. People also knew the Huntsman and his wife were bona fide hosts, providing refreshments before, during, and after the hunt, for humans and animals alike. People of all riding competencies were comfortable in the knowledge that the Huntsman wouldn’t expect them to make jumps, or gallop at speeds that they were not able to handle. The Huntsman always found routes that challenged people’s skills without breaking their courage. A kind and patient man, the Huntsman placed the safety of the people, horses, and dogs before the achievement of the goal. Some of the leadership behaviours displayed extended from the Huntsman’s natural ability, some ...

The Team Code has been published!

As part of accredited training, each person on course gets one-on-one feedback. In this feedback, I usually ask people at the start if they think they are competent in the skills learned. Normally, the response falls in one of two categories. Some people are confidant of their ability and say yes. Some people are hesitant, and squeeze a yes or a maybe out.  

Personal Development Skill: Team Work There is no doubt that the single most important skill to define a leader; to will make or break his or her reputation is their ability to work with a team. This important skill quickly separates true leaders from the “wannabe” that wants to gloat in their own self importance. You may fool fans, but you will never fool the team.

Personal & Leadership Skill: Cultural Awareness Sadly, polarisation seems to be the current trend in the world at the moment. This is a dangerous attitude to own in the “global village” of our modern world. Our workplaces, neighbourhoods and public areas are filled with people from various culture groups and backgrounds. We are exposed to all sorts of age groups, religious persuasions and life attitudes each and every minute. This cosmopolitan environment requires each of us to be able to demonstrate some awareness and sensitivity to other culture groups.   

Personal & Leadership Skill: Use of Science and Technology Developing ourselves requires conscious planning and focus in specific areas. We should not allow our personal and career development to be haphazard or ad hoc. Having a careless attitude towards our career or personal skills could result in us unwittingly becoming redundant and without purpose in the work place.

It will come as no surprise to someone climbing the Leadership Ladder that leaders have to sacrifice in order to succeed! The glamorous image people have of leadership hides the fact that leaders are called to give up more than anyone else in order to stay up the ladder as a leader. The higher you climb as a leader, the greater the sacrifice you will be called to make. Leadership is marked by true living sacrifices. New and budding leaders often falter when they discover the types of sacrifices they need to make and their growth path changes from one of leadership to one of dictatorship. Here is a brief list of sacrifices a leader will be called to make on their path to success:

<< Leadership << 21 Laws to Leadership 4 Keys for Leadership Connection Leadership success is related to a Leader’s ability. The more abilities the leader has, the more likely the Leader is to succeed. One of these abilities required by the Leader is the ability to connect to people. A leader needs to touch the hearts of followers before asking them to put their hands to work. Many people immediately get defensive when they hear a Leader must “Care”. Visions of getting personally involved in the daily details of others lives, carrying burdens and sharing tears put people off getting involved in “caring”. Although a Leader will share these types of intimate moments with inner circle followers or advisors, it is not necessary for the Leader to become an emotional prostitute and ship wreck their personal lives for the sake of being a caring success.

<< Leadership << 21 Laws to Leadership Reliability is as Leader Does Gone are the days of blind leaders ahead of blind followers. Modern teams have a greater consciousness and are seeking reliable and authentic leaders of integrity that are worthy of trust. Leaders can no longer treat people’s trust and respect with reckless attitudes and behavior. A leader must recognize that the position is one of accountability and responsibility.