Welcome to Cause & Effect

Episode 5: Does your organisation ask too much of it's staff?

Most charities don't set out to create a culture of self-sacrifice. But many have, gradually and unintentionally. In this episode, Alex explores how charity cultures ask too much of their people, why it happens, and what leaders can do to start changing it.   WHAT WE COVER •       How a culture of purpose tips into a culture of self-sacrifice •       Why the sector's greatest strength is also its greatest risk •       How well-intentioned values create unintended expectations •       How presenteeism is set from the top without leaders realising •       Four steps to start building a healthier culture   KEY TAKEAWAY Your charity's culture is either asking your people to live to work, or work to live. Changing it requires someone to name it, review the culture honestly, and decide to do things differently. That someone is you.   RESEARCH REFERENCED •       70% of charity leaders have become more concerned about employee burnout in the past year •       66% say their concerns about recruitment and retention have got worse over the same period   THE FOUR STEPS •       1. Audit your culture: what do your values, language, and behaviour actually communicate to your team? •       2. Actively challenge presenteeism: name overwork, model the change, ask if objectives are realistic •       3. Invest in wellbeing that goes deeper than training: culture and skills must work together •       4. Get every leader on board: culture change requires every manager to understand and model the shift   RESOURCES AND LINKS •        RESOURCES AND LINKS •       Book a free call: www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk] •       Connect on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-nunn-059537a6/] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/clear_sea_coaching/]   ABOUT ALEX NUNN Alex is a psychologist with over 20 years of experience working in and with the charity sector. www.clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk]

Episode 4: It's a lonely, hard job

The loneliness of leadership in the charity sector is one of the most consistent things Alex hears from the leaders she works with. Not the obvious kind of loneliness, but the quiet kind that exists in the middle of a full diary and a team that depends on you. In this episode, Alex explores why it happens and what you can actually do about it.   WHAT WE COVER •       Why charity leadership feels lonely even when you're surrounded by people •       Why the board often don't quite get it, and what good support actually looks like •       The fear of being seen not to know, and why leaders keep going rather than asking for help •       Why peer support gets deprioritised, and the cost of that •       Four practical steps to feel less alone   KEY TAKEAWAY The loneliness of charity leadership is not inevitable. It is the product of a sector that has normalised a model of leadership that is unsustainable. That needs to change if we want a sector which has the kind of long-term impact we know it can. THE FOUR STEPS •       1. Build connection inside the organisation, beyond the work •       2. Invest in peer support outside the organisation, starting small and realistic •       3. Get clear on what you need from your chair, and ask for it •       4. Consider specialist support: coaching, supervision, or a combination   RESOURCES AND LINKS •       Book a free call: www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk] •       Connect on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-nunn-059537a6/] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/clear_sea_coaching/] •       Weekly newsletter Live well, lead well: www.clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk]   ABOUT ALEX NUNN Alex is a psychologist with over 20 years of experience working in and with the charity sector. www.clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk]

Episode 3: When did you stop loving the work?

Have you ever wished you could love your job like you used to? That you could find the motivation, the energy, the passion that brought you into this sector in the first place? And, have you found yourself wondering how to motivate your team when you’re struggling to motivate yourself?  If any of that resonates, this episode is for you. Today we explore what going through the motions actually looks like, why it happens, and how to fall back in love with your work.  Timestamps  * 0:00 — Introduction  * 0:30 — What going through the motions looks and feels like  * 3:00 — Why this happens  * 5:30 — What to do about it  * 9:30 — Key takeaway and close  Key takeaway  Going through the motions isn’t a character flaw — and it isn’t permanent. It’s a signal. Something has shifted in the balance between what the work demands and what it gives back. And that balance can change — but only if you create the space to notice what’s happening and make some deliberate choices about what comes next.  The five-point motivation scale  A tool referenced in this episode that you can use as a self-diagnostic:  * 1 — Won’t do: pure disengagement  * 2 — Have to: compliance, fear, survival mode  * 3 — Should do: self-regulated but driven by guilt and anxiety  * 4 — Want to: intrinsic motivation, feels personal and connected  * 5 — Love to: flow, full absorption, you’d almost do it for nothing    Resources and links  * Book a free discovery call: www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk]   * Join the weekly newsletter ‘Live well, lead well’: www.clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk]  * Connect on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-nunn-059537a6/] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/clear_sea_coaching/]    About Alex Nunn  Alex is a coaching psychologist specialising in helping senior charity leaders create sustainable, fulfilling careers. With 20 years of experience in the charity sector, Alex offers executive coaching, team coaching, and organisational consultancy.

Episode 2: What's busy costing you?

Can I ask you a question? Does your organisation have a culture of overwork? Not intentionally. Nobody decides they want one. But on a Wednesday evening when half your team are logging back on to catch up, or on a Saturday when you’re checking your phone for messages that could have waited until Monday, the answer is often yes. In this episode, Alex explores what an overwork culture actually looks like from the inside, what it is really costing your charity, and six practical steps to start changing it. TIMESTAMPS •       0:00: Introduction •       0:30: What an overwork culture looks like from the inside •       3:00: What this is really costing the charity •       5:30: Why this happens •       7:00: Six steps to change your culture •       9:30: Key takeaway and close   THE SIX STEPS COVERED IN THIS EPISODE •       1. Start with what is working: ask your team where you are at your best before looking at what needs to change •       2. Get honest about your strategy: is what you have committed to actually achievable with the resource you have? •       3. Check your roles and resources: do you have the right people, in the right roles, with enough capacity to do the work well? •       4. Look at your systems: are there predictable pinch points that create recurring pressure? •       5. Make it safe to say no, ask for help, and make mistakes •       6. Put wellbeing at the centre: not as an add-on, but as part of strategic decision making   RESOURCES AND LINKS •       Book a free call: www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk] •       Download free resources: clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://clearseacoaching.co.uk] •       Join the weekly newsletter Live well, lead well: clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://clearseacoaching.co.uk] •       Connect on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-nunn-059537a6/] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/clear_sea_coaching/]   ABOUT ALEX NUNN Alex is a psychologist with over 20 years of experience working in and with the charity sector. Alex works with senior leaders to help them find a sustainable, fulfilling way to lead so they and their charities can make the lasting difference they came here to make. www.clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://www.clearseacoaching.co.uk]

Episode 1: Why You Can’t Stop Firefighting (And What to Do About It)

You had a plan for this week. A proper one. Time to think, space to be strategic, maybe even a conversation you’ve been putting off. But before you got there, the emails, the crises, the people at your door, and here you are again, reacting instead of leading.  If that’s familiar, this episode is for you.  Firefighting is one of the most common things senior charity leaders bring to coaching. In this first episode, I explore why it happens, why knowing what to do differently isn’t enough to actually change it, and what to try instead.    What we cover in this episode  * Why the charity sector is structurally set up to keep you in reactive mode  * The values clash that makes it almost impossible to slow down  * The belief underneath the pattern that no one talks about — and why it matters more than any productivity hack  * Why your busyness is disconnecting you from yourself  * Five practical steps that work at the psychological level, not just the surface one    Timestamps  * 0:00 — Introduction  * 0:30 — Does this sound familiar? Validating the experience  * 3:00 — Why this keeps happening  * 5:30 — What to actually do about it  * 9:30 — Key takeaway and close    Key takeaway  Firefighting isn’t a time management problem — and it isn’t a personal failing. It’s what happens when passionate, committed people work in a system that demands more than it gives, and haven’t yet had permission to do things differently. That permission? Consider this it.    Resources and links  * Book a free discovery call: clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk [http://clearseacoaching.co.uk/lets-talk]  * Download free resources: clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://clearseacoaching.co.uk]  * Join the weekly newsletter ‘Live well, lead well’: clearseacoaching.co.uk [http://clearseacoaching.co.uk]  * Connect on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-nunn-059537a6/] & Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/clear_sea_coaching/]