What’s on your failure CV? That’s the question we ask everyone before they come to work with us at Human 1st Ltd. We want to know that you’ve navigated chaos without letting fear drive the bus! Success stories without sweat are just noise. Tell...
Here’s another story reframing hack and how I use it… Whenever my kids’ schools ask for donations to a trip, I pay for as many places as I can afford. As a child with parents who were not engaged in parenting, I felt a sense of dread every time we...
Growing up, music was limited to whatever the least drunk adult sang. In our house a radio was rare and a TV was a luxury that used up too many 50ps in the lecky meter.I loved singing and longed to have a go on the school piano in the hall but that was only unlocked...
My two frustrations about awards ceremonies used to be … 1. The winners who say they don’t know what to say.2. The winners struggle to say anything because they are crying. Then I won Speaker Of The Year and I did both! Karma. On the night I stumbled to...
It all started with a conversation…. Whilst being interviewed by Michelle Bookoff–Bajdek onSkillsoft’s excellent podcast The Edge I mentioned that I’d like to see some research on unwritten rules of work. 👉🏽Those things that nobody says but we all assume...
2023 brings a good news/bad news sitch. Here’s the bad news… Healthy eating is hard. Being overweight is hard.Marriage is hard. Getting divorced is hard.Balancing life and work is hard. Realising you’ve missed key moments in your kid’s life...
What’s your default setting? Human BEING or Human DOING? If making To Do Lists was an Olympic sport I’d have a lot more bling in my jewellery drawer! I used to have several lists on the go at the same time. Lists for home, work, health, my kids,...
The first Christmas present I gave my husband was a bauble I’d found on the tube. We moved into our first home a week before Christmas on a tight budget. That year our decorations were limited to a slightly tired tree and a bauble that had fallen off a drunk guy’s...
What a day! Bloomfest 2022 was a blast 💥 I’m always appreciative of the opportunity to speak into people’s lives so it was a huge honour to deliver the opening keynote on Fearlessness. I don’t usually share my keynote in full, but I’ve had so many amazing...
Last week I delivered a wellbeing day for The Orwell Trust. That’s 300 Everyday Heroes in total! I actually wanted to title the day “Wellbeing For Idiots (Myself Included)” because we all know what we could do to improve our physical and mental...
The impossible has happened! I’m blown over and incredibly honoured to have won awards in three categories at The Speaker Awards: 🎊 Highly Commended for Best Virtual Gig🎉 WINNER – Best Live Gig and…🏆 WINNER – Speaker Of The Year! It’s...
This moment was captured last week by Bros in Mktg at The Speaker Awards. I’d just won Speaker Of The Year, but that’s not why it’s special. I’ve always been blessed with amazing friends in absence of a family growing up. I’ve...
My Saturdays are reserved for Lovely. The goal is to look back at the end of the day and to say ‘You know what, today was lovely’ – and mean it! Today’s Lovely Saturday started with a Rubik’s Cube race with my son who beat me with his...
On the same day I was booked to do seventeen TV and radio interviews promoting the BBC TV show The Apprentice, I had to go and identify my little brother’s body. A few months earlier, the previous season of The Apprentice had been in full swing, and the...
Your past is not a script for your future. My all-time favourite mantra. As a keynote speaker, I get to hang out with thought (and action) leaders. One of the loveliest human males I’ve had the pleasure of following on a couple of occasions is Kriss Akabusi. His...
When was the last time you felt vulnerable? I asked my husband that a few years back. He thought for a moment and replied “Hmm I don’t think I’ve ever felt vulnerable!” Whaaaaaaat? Clearly, our day to day experiences had been different. Ed has always stood on the...
Who’s driving your bus? Back when my kids were young I found myself addicted to American Mommy Bloggers on YouTube.Mommy Bloggers are utterly fantastic in every way and put the overachieving Ms Rabbit from Peppa Pig to shame. Friendly, fun and always smiling with...
As a teacher, one of my favourite things was twisting the end of stories to mess with the kids in my class! I once convinced thirty-one 5 year olds that the big, bad wolf actually just had hay fever. His only crime was reacting to a heavy pollen count whilst passing...
Growing up, I lived on and off with my nan. She was the one consistent adult in my life as various ‘dads’ came and went, more often than not adding a new sibling into the mix. My nan was there to pick up the pieces with her unique style of post-war...
Growing up, I lived on and off with my nan. She was the one consistent adult in my life as various ‘dads’ came and went, more often than not adding a new sibling into the mix. My nan was there to pick up the pieces with her unique style of post-war...
Two stories and a question for you… Ethel & The Blitz My nan’s mate Ethel swore blind her ex-boyfriend was Frank Sinatra. Apparently, it was before he was famous and was working for an ironmonger in Radford. So yeah, some of Ethel’s stories needed to...
We’ve had an industrial revolution and, you know, that went well. 🏭 We’ve had a technical revolution which was by all accounts more fun than you can shake a spanner at. 🛠 We’ve had a digital revolution and in the words of The Schuyler Sisters ‘Look around, look around...
Open Table is a Team Ampaw-Farr family tradition that happens around mealtimes. Whoever is round the table can join in – family, friends, even that postman who popped in to use the loo and ended up staying for a Sloppy Joe. 🌭 Open Table is super easy and only...
Ever thought about the unwritten rules of work? You won’t find them in your employee handbook, but chances are you’re aware of, adhering to or frustrated by the unwritten rules in your organisation. Unwritten rules are part and parcel of company culture. The very...
Ready for a kind kick up the bottom? Your people-pleasing tendencies are stealing joy from your life. There, I said it! Saying yes is an act of courage, an agreement and a decision to move forward. If you’re overcommitting, regularly putting yourself last and telling...
What’s holding you back from joining the Human First Academy? Here are some frequent questions I get from people. 1. I’m not sure what’s inside. What if it’s not a good fit for me? Good question. Inside you’ll find 9 toolkits each with 6 x 10 min...
Here’s a thought… 🙋🏾 Imagine what your life could look like with more intention and less people-pleasing. Yup, that’s quite a bold statement on the weekly to-do list. But it’s not just do-able – it’s everyday behaviour in the Human First Academy. And...
You came into your role to make a difference. The problem is that it sometimes feels like the system is working against you rather than for you. It can sometimes leave you wondering if you’re good enough. Imposter syndrome making you work harder, in turn,...
WOW! That was a blast! Huge thanks to everyone who attended my Human First Workshops this week. We had people from the UK, India, America, Africa and Australia! On the 5th anniversary of my record-breaking TEDx Talk, I launched my Human First Academy – or...
Growing up in and out of foster care and on the streets is something I used to be ashamed of and hide. Crazy on two counts. It wasn’t my fault and I’ve always been a huge success! I was an incredibly resilient child and navigated the chaos of neglect, abuse and...
I came out of the shower this morning to find this slightly confusing text from my friend. “I hope you’ve got your Spandex on. That’s a race I’d pay to watch!” Then I remembered that I’d mentioned I was following Kriss Acabusi as...
Today I had the honour of being invited to join the Helena Kennedy Foundation Award Winners Event at The House of Lords. It was a huge bonus to have Gemma Oaten as my guest. Julie Mills and the team (especially Shahida) pulled together a moving and poignant event...
When the first lockdown hit, like many others, I lost my business. As a keynote speaker, I relied on events – no events meant no work. I was in the fortunate position of not about to starve so set about doing what I’d always wanted and planned to do but had no...
Here are three statements people have said to me after this week’s keynotes. “That was inspirational! You’re the antidote to apathy!” “I was about to hand my notice in but after hearing you I’ve got my mojo back.” “Do...
My husband’s role was made redundant at Christmas. I would have panicked if it wasn’t the 5th time. The other four times have resulted in him landing an even better job – often in the same organisation. This time he decided to start a new chapter and...
Got a ‘Truth About You’ jar? Mine has a quote from the hit musical Hamilton on the front. Look at where you are Look at where you started The fact that you’re alive is a miracle I add all of my audience and client raves in my jar and re-read them all at the...
It’s not HIStory, HERstory or THEIRstory – it’s yours. Bronnie Ware spent most of her career working as a palliative care nurse taking care of those in their final days of life. In her book ‘The Top Five Regrets of The Dying’, she describes the...
If you’ve ever described yourself using the word ‘just’ before your job title or role, this is for you. A few years back I was sat in an auditorium listing to Sue Cowley deliver her keynote. Sue has a unique way of harnessing and embedding curiosity,...
Last week I wrote about doing a premortem on your work/life balance using Bronnie Ware’s The Top Five Regrets Of The Dying. As a palliative care nurse, she spent over ten years caring for patients in their last twelve weeks of life. Bronnie turned her insight...
DOWNLOAD MY FREE TOOLKIT I have a history of setting ridiculously high expectations for myself and then beating myself when I fail. Also, I’m time short, and incredibly busy with loads of really important stuff. Oh yeah, and I also have a Netflix account. You know the...
Forget Christmas Eve pyjamas – it’s all about purple undercrackers in our house. A few years back, we received a little package from my mother in law. That’s normal. What wasn’t normal was the contents. A lurid, almost glowing, pair of mini-human sized...
In December 2004, I had a teaching degree, a mountain of student debt and a fantastic group of friends who were more like family having stood shoulder to shoulder with me through tough times. My grandiose Christmas gift ideas for my ‘framily’ were...
Instead of making resolutions this year why not write a letter from your older self to your current self. Here’s mine – turns out my 90 year old self is super smart! Hey Jaz I know how partial you are to the odd list so I’ve written one for you. Do me a...
Today I got to stand on the same stage as the women from the early Suffragette movement. As he miked me up, Will, the stage manager, listed other speakers who had given speeches standing on the very same floorboards I was about to be on: Ghandi Martin Luther King...
You’re stronger, wiser and more powerful than you think. And I know that because you have a tendency to doubt yourself or talk yourself and your achievements down. It’s called being human, welcome to the club! However, the one thing we need to be completely clear on...
Full disclosure, for a large part of my life, my default setting was misery and depression. I was accustomed to waking up in the morning with a dark heavy cloud around me. I accepted that feeling as ‘normal’ and perfected the habit of disassociation to block the fog....
Ever felt like you have too much to do and too little time to do it in? I’m mum to three kids, I run my own businesses and now and again I like to make out with my husband so, it’s a yes from me. On any given day I’m juggling writing, coaching and...
My favourite awful summer job was working on The Party Bus. This involved loading up two hundred people on to four bright red, double decker buses and driving them to clubs around London all night. Our first stop was usually around 8pm at some underground basement or...
There’s one reason I stayed quiet for so long. Fear. Even when I stood up to share my story I was afraid. Not of individuals. Of the system. After I appeared on The Apprentice, a head took me on one side after I’d delivered literacy training in a school. ‘I can see...
Just over a year ago I stood in front of 300 teachers and decided to tell them the truth about themselves. It was no mean feat seeing as my default setting for my entire career had been lying. I started teaching feeling lucky to even have a job – which is...
In a world where we have apps to let people know we are safe in the event of a disaster, it’s easy to see tragedy as a normal part of life. After all, how do you contain someone who is not concerned for their own safety, let alone that of others? Like being in...
Jill Wood doesn’t look like a revolutionary. She’s softly spoken, her hair is neatly styled, and she’s not wearing any commercially produced Che Guevara merchandise. But this year she was the only head who stood her ground and boycotted SATs in her...
Paul Dix made me cry. Not once, but both times I’ve heard him speak. It’s not his dodgy jokes. It’s that when he talks, every core of his being sees you as human first. He has a way of emphasising before enrolling. Of making you feel acknowledged and...
When coaching a leadership team recently, I asked: ‘Who’s in charge of happiness round here?’ *Blank looks. Followed by someone asking what exactly I meant by happiness. Eventually, the group threw out a few names of people who seemed to be quite...
My five year old has a stunning selection of Poundland Christmas hats, the latest being an elf one with ears and a beard. As I was sitting at the breakfast wearing it listening to Christmas music last week I thought how cool it would be to get together some of the...
I definitely don’t have all the answers. What I do have is a bag full of questions and I’ve finally turned my back on Imposter Syndrome and started asking them! MY WHY is to be a catalyst for change. ‘What If?’ is a series of videos where I try...
You want to make a change. I mean you really want to. And yet every time you try you get stuck. Me too! That’s why I’ve shared this journey with you. Because the good news is, you get to choose what happens...
Mr Ruddock was my history teacher in Y8. I want to sugarcoat it, or say it wasn’t just me, or assert that I wasn’t the worst, but, the truth is: I made his life a misery. Inspired by Paul Dix’s fabulous new book: ‘When Adults Change, Everything...
What would happen if I walked into your staff room and asked: Right you fantastic bunch of heroes, who’s in charge of happiness round here? Blank looks? Confused stares? A random voice offering ‘Well I collect the lottery money each month?’ Are We Having...
I get asked to do a lot of stuff for free. And, some requests don’t even involve cake. My WHY is to be a catalyst for change – a door opener for people to lead, so I always want to start with a yes. Unfortunately, Aldi doesn’t look too kindly on people...
You want to give 100% to life and work without losing yourself. Whenever the scales tip in either direction, guilt rears its ugly head and you start doubting you have what it takes. Which is crazy when you consider how dedicated you are to others living their best...
Invited by Hannah Wilson to create a resource for International Women’s Day on 8th March that encouraged people to #BeBoldForChange I came up with this video. In it I share how flipping and rebranding the words ‘can’t don’t won’t’...
In January 2016, I sat on a beach in Goa and made a plan. Well, two plans. 1) Remember to pack suntan lotion the next time I decide to spend a week in a remote village with no shops. 2) Become a published author, get a Ph.D. and do a TED Talk. WHAT’S YOUR SWAG?...
In the 80s social workers had a slightly bizarre dress code. They could wear any colour they liked as long as it was the wrong shade of brown. The uniform was adhered to so closely, I reckon it must have been either enforced or incentivised in some way. It was so...
I’ve been reflecting on 2016, and the enormous mindset shift I embraced in my role as a leader. One thing I noted was that my success is in alignment with my commitment to authenticity and willingness to allow myself to be vulnerable. The times I chose to hide...
I wrote an article for SchoolWeek and they published it. Also, I can juggle bananas. #justsaying Click on the image below to read it. Based on data, I believed I would never...
3 things I love about #teacher5aday: 1) It’s all about looking after yourself. What better role model could we be to our learners? 2) It’s easy peasy lemon squeezy to join in. Search #teacher5aday on Twitter or check out the YouTube channel. 3) You...
I’ve kept every resolution I’ve made on Jan 1st for the last 10 years. I keep it simple by recycling the same one every year. ‘I’m going to give up smoking.’ Some of my 100% track record may be down to the fact that I have never smoked. I’m...
We talk about a WAGOLL (What A Good one Looks Like) in reference to a piece of work that learners can take features from and use to reverse engineer success in their own writing. I’ve seen persuasive writing so through the roof, A* answers nailed and even maths...
We’re all fighting for our lives in one way or another. For some of us that can mean physical challenges around our own health or the health of those we care for. For others it can mean being held captive by the prison that is our own mind. Where our psyche only takes...
Seth Godin recently posted a brilliant article on his blog – here’s a paraphrased UK version… Assumptions are what you use to bridge a gap in your own knowledge. If they turn out to be accurate, then you got lucky and your lack of research...
As a learner, being working class poor defined my life choices, mindset and decisions – much more than being brown which didn’t really come up until I started teacher training and enjoyed being the only person who wasn’t white at Bishop Grot! School...
I nearly gave up on my dream of becoming a teacher to be a gladiator instead. I even had a name all sorted: WhirlWind Only three things stood in my way. I had never been to a gym in my life, I was completely incapable of doing a backflip and they already had a female...
A few weeks ago I was in a school about to receive a visit from Ofsted. While sharing a packet of chocolate hobnobs, one teacher said: “I just hope it’s a nice team.” If you’ve attended any of my training, you have probably heard me bang on...
A strange and bizarre thing happens around October, because, at least for me, The Apprentice really is the gift that keeps on giving! Being fired in the first week of the show was embarrassing, hilarious, embarrassing again and then even more hilarious. Now, every...
It’s true. WomenEd have ruined my life. Before getting involved, I was successfully denying being a leader and living behind my fear! My internal voice quietly reminded me that I’m an imposter and if I put myself out there everyone will realise how little...
There’s lots of conflicting advice around about being a leader. One question I have is around whether it’s good for leaders to show ‘weakness’ or not. I guess it depends on what sort of leader you want to be. I’M A MISTAK ARTIST Last week (when I make a...
Whenever I’m delivering literacy training I joke with the teachers asking them to imagine what it would be like having me as a parent of a child in their class. It provokes nervous laughter! For one lovely lady, that joke became a reality today as I left my youngest...
Up until Easter this year I was spending a fair amount of time hiding under a rock. Then I took what felt like a huge risk and changed my #TMLondon keynote slides at the last minute. Instead of expectation and marking in literacy, I decided to go for it and be...
One thing I love to do is to go and watch other teachers teach. Not only does it help me to reflect and give me ideas, I also get to see the WHY of a classroom. The WHY is about being aware of the process of learning and noticing the stops along the way. In some...
With three children at home, the six weeks of summer are fun and frantic in equal measure. We visit family and friends, hang out at the park and have water fights on the trampoline. Last year we had themes each week. During 80s week we watched Allo Allo and wore...
I once asked my six-year-old what he wanted to do when he grew up. In one breath he told me that he wanted to be firefighter and then, at the weekend, change his trousers and be a police officer until he had enough money to buy his own football kit, then leave the...
At school tomorrow, you’ll be standing in front of some learners who have had a difficult Father’s Day. Having no idea who my biological father is and living with a violent step father made dealing with authority a bit of a sticking point for me. It also presented a...
Just before Easter I accidentally joined a gang. Though it’s only been a couple of months, it’s already panning out to be a definite upgrade from ‘The Yung Blud Posse’ I joined aged 10. As an added bonus, no one has insisted I break into any houses. This new gang are...
Last year, my sister called me to tell me that she had won the lottery. Me: OMG! How much? Sister: Well, I have enough money to last me for the rest of my life. Providing I drop dead a week on Tuesday. Short Term Thinking In the Government’s recently published...
Receiving abuse over social media is hurtful and upsetting because we imagine that we’re having an actual conversation with the usual rules of engagement in force. We join in and share ideas like we’re socialising at a party. BANANAS WHO LIKE TO BE BAD ASS...
Monday kicked off with finding out that my youngest child has got a place at the Infant school we put down as first choice. It’s a fantastic school and I am 100% confident that he will get an incredible start to his education. On Tuesday I faced my fear of...
On Tuesday, I went to visit the incredible human that is Natalie H Scott, and teach in the school at the Grand-Synthe Refugee Camp in Dunkirk. When Natalie told me about working there I asked if I could go because like her I believe that children, no matter what their...
What’s your 5, 10 and 15 year plan for your own professional development? a) I’m all on it like a car bonnet. b) Courses of course. I love a good lunch me. c) What’s CPD? I’ve spoken before about how many of the teachers I coach see CPD as something that is done...
Good question – I’ll get back to you when I have an answer for that. In the meantime, this keynote I gave at #TMLondon does the job and also explains how: teachers saved my life we can all be resilience ninjas being able to do a reasonable Scottish...
You can listen to the full interview HERE. We also had a brilliant time interviewing Jaz Ampaw-Farr this week. Jaz Ampaw-Farr began as a teacher with a passion for preventing literacy failure. She is now a literacy consultant and director of Which Phonics Ltd –...
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