About Ben Brearley & Thoughtful Leader
Hi, I’m Ben Brearley and I’m a leadership coach. Thoughtful Leader is my leadership coaching website and business.
If you want to be a leader who wants to have a positive impact on the team you lead and the organisation you work in, you’ve come to the right place. If you’re a leader who rules with an iron fist, acts on impulse and needs to be the most important person in the room all the time, well … this site is not for you.
As a Thoughtful Leader, you know that the teams that work best actually enjoy their jobs. You know it’s so important to be the kind of leader who is intentional about what you do and how you communicate. Sometimes, you might even care more about the development and job satisfaction of your team than your own.
But that’s what keeps you going. You want to be a better leader, so your team can perform at their best.
Thoughtful leaders think hard about how other people are feeling and the impact that their leadership has on those around them. In that frame of mind, you start to make better decisions that play to the strengths of your team and get better results.
You still hold your team accountable and expect results. After all, leaders are expected to achieve outcomes. However, the best leaders achieve results in the right way.
You Can’t Lead Everyone the Same Way
I have two undergraduate degrees, an MBA and I’m also certified coach. I have also worked and been trained in some of the world’s largest and well known international companies.
I don’t really like theory, unless it can be put into practice, in real situations. And while I think leadership assessment tools can be useful, I’m not a fan of using these assessments to put labels on other people and confine them to a specific category.
People are all different and they can’t be put in boxes. While sometimes leadership models and tests can be useful, they’re only a guide.
We learn how to lead our teams and adapt our approach based on how your team behaves and responds to the environment and what you do. Being observant is one of the most critical skills of a leader.
So How Do We Become Better Leaders?
For me, great (and thoughtful) leadership is made up of three main aspects, which are the focus of my coaching and courses.
First, leaders need to develop better time management skills, so they have the time and headspace to lead strategically and support their teams effectively.
Next, leaders need to build self-confidence, so they have the conviction to speak out against bad behaviour, push back on pointless tasks and stand up for themselves and their teams.
Last, but certainly not least, leaders need to understand how to motivate their team members to improve performance and job satisfaction. This requires empathy, understanding and the ability to listen.
In my experience, when we do this, the quality of the work is better, your team operates with less stress and has fewer issues. You look like a great leader, because your team is doing great work. And that can’t hurt when you’re looking to progress your career.
Thoughtful leadership is not about being everybody’s friend all the time. It is not about always being the nice girl or guy. But if you’re passionate about helping your team thrive and develop their own careers, then you’ve come to the right place.
If you want to become the leader that people enjoy working for, subscribe at the bottom of the page, for free articles and updates from ThoughtfulLeader.com.
If you want to improve the way you lead to be the best leader you can be, you can also contact me about Leadership Coaching or check out my Leadership Products.
About Ben Brearley, the Author
My name is Ben Brearley and I’m a leadership coach and experienced leader and manager, who has been leading people for over 15 years. In 2015 I started Thoughtful Leader because I realised that my passion for developing people and helping other leaders was greater than actually working directly in leadership roles!
I’ve coached clients all over the world. I’ve also managed people, teams and projects in all sorts of different industries, cities and companies.
I currently live in Perth, Western Australia with my loving and supportive wife and energetic dog.
What’s my own leadership like? Well, here’s some feedback from some former team members that covers it:
“I’ve worked with a lot of managers and quite frankly they are pretty crap. You care about the clients, team and work while understanding how it needs to come together.”
“Ben is a rare kind of leader – a skilled and intelligent pragmatist with a great sense of humour, who trusts and builds his people.”
And here are some thoughts from a few of my coaching clients:
“Even though I have been in leadership for a number of years, I was able to take away new strategies not only for myself, but for the leadership around me. I felt like I had constructive items to take away from each session. It was also beneficial to spend time on self-reflection, which is something that most people don’t regularly prioritize.”
“Before Ben’s coaching I was extremely uncomfortable, fearful about my abilities and held myself back with my self-limiting beliefs. In such subtle ways, I was self-sabotaging and now that I work with Ben my confidence has soared and belief in myself has exponentially increased.
Ben is so clear and concise in his coaching and will be the most valuable time you can invest for your personal growth and development.”
Why I Created Thoughtful Leader
I created Thoughtful Leader because thoughtful leadership is good leadership. I am passionate about leadership and have a strong desire to make a positive difference to leaders and workplaces around the world. I believe that leadership is the greatest driver of organisational job satisfaction and performance and I see many workplaces that could be much better than they are.
I want to improve how people feel about work, and how workplaces operate. The best way I know how to do that is to help thoughtful leaders become more effective and find the right balance in their leadership and life.
If I can help thoughtful leaders improve, their teams will be happier, more productive and motivated. This sets a great example for the next generation of leaders.
Over time, this multiplying effect makes our workplaces into better places to work.
That’s how work gets better, one thoughtful leader at a time.
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