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How to give constructive feedback (and not sound like a d**k) Part 2
In part 1 of How to give constructive feedback (and not sound like a d**k) we looked at getting into the right mindset both before and during the delivery of feedback. This addresses any anxiety you may have and avoids your feedback to be misunderstood, many of us don’t even want to give feedback because sometimes it sits outside of our comfort zone. If you’ve not read part one read it here, I suggest you have a read before cracking on with part 2! In part 2 we will be looking at feedback models, these models can be used as a baseline structure around delivering feedback, they relate to fast…
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How to give constructive feedback (and not sound like a d**k) Part 1
We’ve all been there, we know the feedback we have for peers would be really helpful, it’s constructive criticism right? It could make their job easier or make them better at their job. However, it is not positive feedback we’re about to deliver and it can be a little bit out of our comfort zone to relay that negative feedback in a way that doesn’t make us sound like a bit of a d**k. Feedback is so important to our personal development. It allows us to see other people’s points of view, increases transparency in teams, builds better trust in relationships and gives us the opportunity to grow in both…
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8 Reasons Why You Need a Coach and Mentor for Your Career
In my talks ‘let go to leadership’ I talk about having both a coach AND mentor, and key differences between them and how they benefit your career and personal development. I have learnt a lot by having a brilliant coach and mentor and highly recommend you steer your way to getting both a coach and a mentor. In this blog I’ll talk about the difference between a coach and mentor and what they can bring to your development, and some mentorship programmes I can recommend! What is a Coach? Coaches are trained to bring out the answer from within you for the present and future. They don’t give advice or…
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Non-technical aspects of breaking into tech
There’s more to getting a technical role than the technical skills, below I’ve composed a few tips outlining the beginning of your journey into tech. If you’re reading this, you might not be too far in your tech journey yet and very interested to get started, so these tips are all from a non-technical point of view. I’d say communities are the building blocks of the tech industry. Get online First things first, there are tonnes of free resources, tech communities, people willing to help with tech problems and opportunities to grow your brand and your knowledge. Have a look at the hot spots which are going to help you.…
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5 Tips to Becoming a Better Communicator
During a conversation It’s common for us to think and create our response while someone else is talking. Once we think of what we will say next, we keep that in our brain ready to say it as they have finished. Resulting in us not actually listening to the rest of what they have to say, and even great listeners can do this too. This means we’ve missed part of the conversation and not actually listened to all of what they have said, we also may show that we’ve missed what they have said while formulating our reply. We might get distracted and disinterested now because we want to get…
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7 Tips for Setting Badass Work Goals
We all work differently, and objective setting is something which comes around yearly in nearly every company! Personally, I love setting goals, from the smallest stuff to long term vision. I’m not one for new years resolutions but I have thought about my goals for my next year based on my reflections from my past months, and year. If you’re not a fan of writing out your work objectives, don’t worry you don’t have to have everything set in stone for the year, it’s good to have flexibility within your objectives because circumstances and situations may change and it’s best to be prepared so you can avoid feeling like you…
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Leadership Journey: Leader Vs Manager
To be a successful leader, you have to have a certain skillset which enables you to not only to develop others, but motivate and inspire, and influence people. Often the line gets blurred between leadership and management. Being a manager doesn’t automatically mean you’re a leader, and vice versa. Some key differences between being a manager and a leader: ⭐ You can be a leader without managing a team⭐ Being a manager doesn’t automatically make you a leader⭐ You can be a leader in a junior role⭐ It can be non-hierarchical Myth Buster: Leaders are born great A common myth is that to be a great leader, you have to…
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Ada Lovelace Day 2020
Tech moves so quick it’s down to us in industry to ensure we can equip and support young people who will be coming into our industry. Rachel Skelton Happy Ada Lovelace Day! (13th October 2020)!! Virtual events were held internationally for Ada Lovelace Day, a day to celebrate the achievements of Women in Stem (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths), whilst remembering the first woman programmer: Ada Lovelace. How did we celebrate Women in Stem? In collaboration with Calderdale College, Covea Digital and Blue Prism I was on a panel alongside a bunch of fantastic Women in Stem: Ana Howes – Global Head of educational Services at Blue Prism Bindi Basan –…
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Recognising & addressing Toxic Positivity on Social Media
We all want to focus on the positive right? Sure, but it is possible to have too much of a good thing. The term “toxic positivity” recently popped up on my social feed, and I’d not heard of that term before but I immediately knew it was the name for what I have been experiencing on social media for a while. The context which I refer to is the mental health challenges created by toxic positivity online. Firstly, what is toxic positivity? I’m sure we’ve all seen the positive quotes, motivational accounts spreading that positive energy with “Nothing is impossible” and it’s great to see when it’s a Monday morning,…
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Lessons learned in 2019
From taking over Leeds Frontend, getting let go as a junior developer, to carving the beginning of my career and landing a junior role in management. This year has been extraordinary for my tech life! I wanted to do a full reflection of 2019 and what I have learnt. The truth came to light in Richard Branson’s quote: “If somebody offers you an amazing opportunity but you are not sure you can do it, say yes – then learn how to do it later.” – Leeds Frontend Meetup My friend and I took over Leeds Frontend Meetup early 2019 as the previous organiser unfortunately didn’t have time to run it. We both had never ran…
