Mandy is a Performance Coach for busy and successful executives. You may ask, as I did, why any successful person would need a performance coach.
The answer is simple. We all have a blind spot for our own flaws. Mandy is able to lead you into discovering your own areas of imperfectness in a safe and non-judgemental environment.
Then she assists you in discovering the changes you need to make. All the time keeping in mind your actions and interactions with those around you.
Before the training program, I could not visualise how to effect the change needed in my business. Now the solutions are more clear and there is light at the end of the tunnel.
Entering into the Performance through People Programme I wasn’t sure about what to expect. I was carefully joined into a team with three colleagues, each of us with a different work focus. The Performance though People Programme allows for all working environments, different levels of responsibility and personality types. It enabled me to seek out my strengths and my weaknesses and gave me practical tools to shape leadership skills, even skills I was didn’t know I possessed. This programme really allowed me to stretch myself beyond my expectations.
The course notes are useful for referencing and are good reminders about how to manage situations as they arise either personally or as a team. Being able to share this journey with colleagues was most valuable. A really useful resource, relevant to my specific working environment, was the information provided on Multi-Generational
Workspaces.
I would like to commend our facilitator, Mandy Russell on her ability to encourage the team members to open-up even when it was really hard. Mandy’s clear and calm directive makes this coaching programme a worthwhile investment for any organisation.
Before I decided to do the Performance Through People course I was in a space where I was struggling to make the transition from small business owner to large business CEO. I was poor at delegation, and poor at creating discipline within the business. I felt hamstrung by the day to day challenges of the business and felt out of touch with what was happening financially. Furthermore, I felt like I was underperforming in the other aspects in my life, i.e. marriage, children, health, vitality etc.
During the course I learnt a lot about myself. Mandy created a space where I felt at ease and remarkably comfortable in sharing quite personal emotions and experiences. The course did happen during an extremely turbulent time in the business and external environment, and It would be fair to say I didn’t do much on the course outside of the time spent with Mandy. At least not consciously. Despite this, we seemed to make progress and improvements seemed to happen in my personal and professional life.
At the start of the course we wrote down a “mission” for the course, i.e. where I wanted to be at the end of the course. At the time, I don’t think I truly believed I could get there. The transition is still ongoing, but I feel like I have the fundamentals to make this happen.
Thank you Mandy for making this journey a reality!!
I was very eager to start on the course as for a long time in my career I had always envied executives who received personal coaching. This was going to be group coaching, but it was perfect for me as it is not something that I could afford to do from my own financial resources. I started the course at a very frustrating time in my career but it was very difficult to articulate my frustration and did not even know how to get out of the situation. I was very impressed by the money Archetypes because they really spoke to who I was as a person and how this translated to my management style. Over the weeks, I learnt to shift from being motherly towards my team which was a default position that I had always used due to my strong nurturing nature and learnt to guide the team through full delegation of responsibilities.
I learnt to have very difficult conversations, which I would normally avoid in the past. As difficult as it was to have these tough conversations repeatedly, this new skill allowed me to change the course of my career into a place where I feel in control and in charge.
I am really grateful to Mandy for impacting lifetime skills.
When I first heard of the opportunity to do this course: Performance through People with Mandy, I was both sceptical and excited. I was excited because it presented an unexpected opportunity for me to grow. I was sceptical because I was not convinced I could spare the time to attend the lengthy sessions. At the end of the course, I can definitely say that the investment was worth the time! I enjoyed the group dynamic and the camaraderie we shared.
Mandy was consistent and her insights were helpful not only in my career, but personal life also. We followed the weekly notes that helped to create a record of the sessions which was a helpful resource. Mandy has equipped me with valuable and practical skills to use in my daily work environment. I can say, without a doubt, that the best skill I learned was how to have ‘the difficult conversation’ – whether it be with a colleague or family member – I found this to be a valuable tool which I will always take with me. The course took on even more significance when I was promoted to a senior position within my unit. I can definitely recommend this course wholeheartedly!
I was fortunate to be nominated to participate in the Performance Through People Course with Mandy Russell from Fresh Horizons. I found the course extremely valuable and I have been able to implement what I have learnt in my professional and personal environment. I would recommend this course as it gave me the opportunity to reflect on my leadership style and how I interacted with colleagues. I would like to acknowledge my appreciation for Mandy’s willingness to engage with us around difficult topics and her insight in challenging issues and encouraging us to delve deeper into our own responses to personal and professional dynamics.
This course was an investment in my professional growth and I am extremely grateful for this learning opportunity and Mandy’s role in facilitating this. Her compassion and understanding of human behaviour was highlighted in our interactions and role playing. Thank you Mandy for these life lessons and giving me the tools I can use professionally. I definitely more confident leader which is benefit to me and my team.
André, CEO at Blastrite (Pty) Ltd, did the Performance through People programme in mid 2015
My exposure to strict military discipline as a child, my farther a retired senior officer in the SA Navy, and early career in the SA Navy influenced my leadership style and so a military leadership style came naturally to me, even though that isn’t who I am at my core. Away from the military I took on aspects of other leaders who crossed my path, but all linked to an autocratic management style. At the time I met Mandy I was working harder and harder, getting more and more frustrated with managers for their lack of insight, initiative and drive.
During the programme, and via a book Mandy recommended I read, to support my mindset shift, things came into perspective for me. Now, 15 months later, my team and I get along really well; we have robust conversations and they feel heard and able to contribute.
Everyone has grown and I’m even effectively leading people who historically were very territorial over their area of responsibility. I’m recognising in each of us, our own unique leadership styles and giving space for that, respecting those around me for their unique contribution even if it looks quite different to mine. In my own role, I have more autonomy now and I’ve stepped from managing into leading and seldom experience the same amount of stress these days.
I did Performance through People with Mandy in 2014, I continued with the role I had then, (Director Sport Horse Insurance) however I also have an additional role (Kuda Holdings Admin Manager).
Prior to the programme, I used only one channel of communication; email, and my approach was the same in every situation. Driven largely by concern at the response I might get I often stepped over dealing with the very issues I needed to, resulting in unnecessary unhappiness for me. Now I have a variety of different approaches at my disposal.
I’m learning that even when I think I may have done a great job in a conversation, it may not be received that way. So I know I’m always on the court; finding a balance between standing up for what I believe is good for the business and saying it in the best possible way. As the saying goes ‘Practice makes Perfect.’
Looking back on the past 9months the only stress I’ve experienced is the ‘pressure’ of ensuring certain deadlines are met, but I view that as positive stress at a time when we’ve been making big advancements in the business.
I’ve just completed step 5 of the Performance through People programme.
I do believe I have some leadership skills; your training and coaching will enable me to refine that leadership and through our conversations about my situation specifically, I’m building awareness of the pitfalls in my current approach so that ultimately I can lead my dream team. An unexpected surprise, in addition to building my dream team at work, this training has highlighted some responsibility and accountability issues at the home front, which are now being addressed.
The place I find myself in today is much stronger, more flexible, more present. Not just in my work life but also in my home life. I am sleeping better, exercising regularly, eating healthily, taking more time for my partner and for the things that matter to him. I’m happier at home and more productive at work, and for the first time in a very long time I feel like work is sustainable – for me and the work place. “Work smart, not hard” is something I am beginning to appreciate as a practice, not just a corporate idiom. I’ve never had a problem with “leaning in”: my lesson was to conserve my energy until it really mattered, not expend it on unimportant tasks. I also find I have more patience with myself where I don’t get teamwork right, or relationships get rocky (as they are wont to do periodically when people work together every day). I’m learning to differentiate between when I need to be soft, and when I need to be hard, learning that just because someone is highly emotional, doesn’t mean they are right. When someone is upset I am learning to disarm my own emotional response so I don’t get caught up in the fray. Critical work lessons. Critical life lessons.
Whilst I know I haven’t fully done all the practising I could have, I know I’m on a journey that is seeing me move forward; I make more time to talk to and listen to the team. My confidence in dealing with situations has dramatically improved because I now have access on ‘how to’ handle different scenarios that arise with team. Given I’m Afrikaans and my team are often older than me, this has improved my confidence a lot. I’m also focussing on giving people the appropriate response that resolves things versus fobbing them off. Last week I saw 3 clients as a result of delegating more.
As a result of being in the Performance through People programme I have gone from blind panic and crisis management to gain a totally new perspective on how to handle things. Life is easier, I have clarity and I’m playing a more guiding role. I have insight into how things can be dealt with, it’s a new discipline with tangible results. I’m much more grounded in my approach to work and my personal life.
I was the first (non-founding) person with the company, so naturally I was, by default, jack-of-all-trades; although I was the Admin/Office Manager, I did a little bit of everything.
Delegating tasks was the hardest part for me, as I didn’t want to ‘let go’ of anything. I wanted to do everything that I could possibly do.
As the business has grown, and through the skills learned in Performance through People in 2014, I’m now more focused on my growth and career opportunities within the company than my concerns that I’m not the one doing everything.
I still work in the Admin Department, and even though I’m no longer in a management position, I have my main focus on developing myself so that I can work in the short-term personal insurance department.
In addition, I now make time for myself; I’ve started doing Triathlons and these events make me happy and alive. I’ve realized I need to focus on my health and happiness in order for me to happy in all aspects of my life.
Doing the Performance through People programme in 2015, Jenny is now a year down the line and has just handed over the Menlyn Park Shopping Centre, ZARA store. She says about the programme “I now have the confidence to spot possible breakdowns early on and to mitigate potential challenges upfront. Communication is definitely better, I focus on acknowledgement of the team, before giving feedback and guidance on how to best meet ZARA’s exacting standards; even when we have curved balls coming at us. With this last project I felt totally relaxed, being based in Cape Town and the team up in Gauteng. I went up once a week and for the last 4 days before handover.
So I’ve been leading a remote team, but with insight into what to put in place to ensure they are taken care of and I am confident that agreed actions are happening. ZARA was thrilled with the store, so it’s smiles all around,
Mandy Russell is a change agent of note.
As a business coach, Mandy has a way of guiding you to ask the right questions about your own behaviour in a way that is non-confrontational and even playful.
I have been fortunate to benefit from the experience of having both one-on-one sessions and group sessions, and can honestly say that her facilitation has helped bring about shifts in understanding that have been life-changing. These shifts apply equally to both the workplace and to more personal aspects of life. It is testimony to her understanding of human nature that she does not attempt to isolate the two spheres, but rather draws on the aspect of authentic self that will serve both the business and the personal.
Deeply insightful, Mandy seems to intuitively know when to push for progress, or hold back to give time for self-reflection – and in the process gives the reins over to the person being coached. Her irreverent sense of humour serves to diffuse what are sometimes difficult or intensely emotional moments of sharing, but in a way that is affirming and uplifting.
Mandy has inspired me to bring all that I can contribute to my role at work – in a way that is true to self, and respectful of others – but without budging on issues of principle. It is these attributes that she also embodies in her coaching work – practising what she preaches.
I am sincerely grateful that I was given the opportunity to participate in the Performance through People programme with Mandy Russell. The programme came at a time when I didn’t think I had the time available for it, but the investment started to provide returns quite quickly: I soon came to value the regular group sessions as a space for much needed reflection, insightful sharing from my colleagues and valuable learning from the programme material.
I wholeheartedly appreciate Mandy’s facilitation of the programme: I benefitted from her gifts of insight and consistent focus that helped me to deal with whatever challenges emerged week by week. I have learned many useful skills and techniques, and I have grown through the group process – to the point where I now feel confident as a leader. I know that I will achieve more effective results in my work as a direct result of participating in this programme. The investment of time and energy has been well worth it!
I started this course at a time a time when I was really struggling to keep all the balls in the air.
At work, we had massive system changes and a restructure. The restructure meant that I had more people reporting to me and what made this a real challenge is that I work remotely.
Personally, I was only back 5 months after maternity leave and still trying to regain my work/life balance.
Performance Through People taught me to delegate and not to abdicate; that everything in life is a request; not to think for others and to distinguish between what is important and what is not.
I am very pleased with the outcome of the course. The feedback from my team is that they are happy, motivated and experiencing professional growth. I am less stressed, feel more in control of my life and I am making a success of working remotely.
Thank you, Mandy.
I came into the program with no expectations, only that I definitely did not have time in my day for another “task.” I now look back and can’t believe all that I have learnt and actually how much “time” I have learnt to save just by doing things differently and learning how to work more effectively.
I have always tried to handle everything myself as I was always concerned about everyone’s else’s workload, leaving my own workload to its detriment. Since PTP I have started empowering others with more responsibility, this has been so well received, I have seen huge growth in those that I have empowered, leaving more time for my own workload.
A simple action that has so many benefits.
Since starting Performance through People, I have become a more confident leader, confidence in myself as a leader and confident in my leadership style. I am on the path to clearly defining my leadership style and knowing what is determining my success as well as areas that need focus.
My attitude in the work place has become more positive and am able to reflect that positivity onto my team.
PTP has helped me to practice delegating more, which has helped me to empower others whilst freeing me up to get through my workload. Empowering others and sharing responsibility has added great support to the team.
I used to get very emotionally drained and take on un necessary stress by personally taking on everyone’s problems, I always assumed I was to solve every issue that was discussed with me. PTP has taught me to clarify expectations, because sometimes my function is to just be a sounding board.