In this ¾ hour seminar, we learned key strategies to help your coachee or mentee overcome barriers to confidence. We explored factors that lead to a loss of confidence and discussed techniques for promoting self-compassion and strength-based growth.

In this 45-minute seminar, we explored how to address Imposter Syndrome (IS) through coaching and Positive Psychology. Focusing on key concepts like the Dunning-Kruger Effect and the neuroscience behind IS, we discussed how IS manifests through behaviours such as People Pleasing, Perfectionism, Paralysis, and Procrastination (the 4 P’s). Participants also explored how to leverage personal strengths to counteract IS and foster success in coaching and mentoring roles. By the end of this talk, participants have: • Gained an understanding of the Dunning-Kruger Effect and its impact on IS. • Discussed the neuroscience of IS and the influence of the 4 P’s. • Explored how the 4 P’s of IS affect personal and professional life. • Discussed role diversity, inclusion, and their effect on success and leadership. • Developed strategies to apply personal strengths to mitigate feelings of IS.

In this ¾hr seminar, we will examine a specific strengths identification tool and present a case study where this was used in a marketing team, together with pitfalls and positives. The learning from this example, could help those working in teams utilise this strengths identification tool, or similar, to maximise individual energy and workload. In this session, the following will be discussed: - The strengths tool used to identify individual strengths - How these individual strengths were then collated and cross-matched for the team - The subsequent workshops held - The positive outcomes - The challenges - What could have been done differently?

In this ¾hr seminar, we will revisit the Positive Psychology (PP) movement that was touched on previously with those who participated in the Coaching in Higher Education Foundation Level programme. We will discuss some exciting new ways of bringing PP principles into group settings and the implications for Higher Education Coaching and Mentoring. In this session, the following will be discussed: - Tips to successfully teach PP in group settings - Potential barriers to successfully teaching PP in groups settings - PP in hope therapy - PP Intervention using photographs - Using strengths in different ways - meeting others with similar strengths - Decoding emotions by analysing speech, body, and face - Silent gratitude mapping.

"This ¾ hr talk explored self-care coaching and how you can help your coachee and yourself to be more cognisant of self-care. This talk was not just for coaches or mentors, but for anyone who functions within an environment that is constantly caring for other, always available and willing to help i.e., teachers, lecturers, team leaders, team members, support staff, parents etc."

"Students need to use the internet to support their studies and are a group identified with low wellbeing and high loneliness. Re-Connect is a workshop that has been developed in MTU in response to research findings that highlight difficulties caused by problematic internet use for students. The workshop is being rolled out in MTU and aims to support students in developing awareness of their internet use and its affects. The workshop also enables students with tools which can help to develop healthy internet habits or redesign habits that are causing them problems. The workshop to date has got excellent feedback from staff and student participants and aligns exactly with the government strategy for healthy campuses. Student problematic internet use can be addressed in a way that few other issues affecting health and wellbeing are. The workshop has been developed to address a student need as evidenced by research, it is a university cross collaboration, developed with student input, honed with professional expertise empowers students to redesign those habits for wellbeing and academic performance. This workshop is designed for lecturers who might want to deliver the Re-Connect workshop with their students. This workshop was delivered by Oonagh O’Brien and Catherine Murphy, who gave an overview of the Re-Connect programme, the research that drove its development and they shared resources and facilitation techniques to enable delivery of Re-Connect to student groups. "

"This seminar showcased a range of innovative curricular wellbeing initiatives in UCC and MTU and also provided a forum for discussing such initiatives in line with the National Forum’s USI ""Embedding Wellbeing in the Curriculum"" report. In addition, Gareth Hughes from the University of Derby who has authored the book “Be well learn well” shared his insights on the topic as keynote speaker. The seminar was timely given the growing concern for the increased levels of student mental ill health and low wellbeing. As educators, we have the means to ensure that curricula are well designed, and enabled to support the needs of students. Attendees learned from experienced practitioners who have successfully altered their respective curricula and what effect it has had on students. The overall goal of this seminar was to ensure that the sharing of resources and information between HEIs will lead to increased knowledge of curricular approaches to student wellbeing and in turn lead to improved mental health promotion and prevention across higher education in Ireland."

" “It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” (Aristotle) According to a recent study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), funded by the Health and Safety Authority, the instances of work-related stress amongst employees in Ireland has doubled between 2010 and 2015. Work-Related Stress (WRS) is stress caused or made worse by work. It simply refers to when a person perceives the work environment in such a way that his or her reaction involves feelings of an inability to cope. ‘Stress occurs when an individual perceives an imbalance between the demands placed on them on the one hand, and their ability to cope on the other. It often occurs in situations characterised by low levels of control and support.’ (Professor Tom Cox, I-WHO, University of Nottingham, UK). As we all know, higher education can be a particularly stressful environment for both staff and students due to a variety of competing demands and deadlines at various stages during the academic year, many of which are beyond their control. Rather than just focusing on students, this workshop was all about staff and helping them survive! It aimed to provide participants with some suggestions to help reduce, or at least manage, some of the causes and effects of stress and hopefully help participants to take control of their workload and stress levels. Participants who attended this workshop: Identified strategies that could be utilised to better manage their workload Became more aware of the signs and symptoms of stress Identified some useful strategies to help deal with stress Examined the value of feedback on lectures and the importance of reflecting on one’s teaching for one’s own professional development Discussed some of the shared challenges faced in higher education today and potential solutions"

"Empowerment is defined as the “the process of gaining freedom and power to do what you want or to control what happens to you”. Empowerment can help you: Feel good and laugh more frequently Recharge your batteries and find a new lease of life Achieve those goals that you may currently think are way too far out of reach Overcome challenges and see tasks through to conclusion For those who want more out of life, to achieve more, do more and be more - this workshop aimed to provide participants with the tools they need to change their mind-set and breakthrough to the next level – tools that, perhaps, could be shared with their students to help them achieve more too! This workshop provided a brief immersion into the power of the mind, and participants learned that the resources we need to move forward positively in life are already within us. Through fun activity and lots of laughter participants opened the door to transformation, instilling courage to dream and participants left with an incredible experience of their power to accomplish amazing results."

"A common myth is that the way to deal with pressure is to work harder. We like to think that extending work hours and multitasking are ways to be more effective at work. The truth is, this thinking is flawed. Too much pressure or stress creates narrowed thinking and increases the likelihood of flawed reasoning. It also turns on the stress response in the body, releasing a tsunami of chemicals and hormones. Being able to increase your resilience is necessary in today’s uncertain and volatile workforce. This workshop was targeted at all staff, both academic and administrative, and, based on research from the Centre for Creative Leadership, and aimed to introduce participants to a variety of ways to improve resilience, such as: Reframing how we think about situations or experiences The importance of sleep and exercises to support a good night’s sleep Developing strategies to cope when our sleep is compromised Exploring the power of positivity The workshop included an introduction to some simple Tai Chi practices and hand mudras that are very effective ways of managing one’s stress and energy. "

The World Health Organisation defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”. In direct alignment with this holistic ethos, ‘A Healthy MTU’ (AHMTU) is a campus health promotion initiative that aims to maximise the health and wellbeing of all MTU students, staff and indeed the extended university community. To date, the initiative has been informed by a designated programme of research that has endeavoured to investigate the complex determinants of health within university settings. The overarching purpose of this event was to challenge traditional models of health, and to discuss the inextricable links that exist between health, education, social equity, inclusion, organisational cultures and broader societal determinants. The event encompassed an overview of empirical evidence that has been gathered to date by the AHMTU Research Team, pertaining specifically to the health and wellbeing of MTU staff. In addition, the event aimed to challenge attendees to consider the international ‘Healthy University’ movement, and its aligned initiatives such as AHMTU, as a powerful, synergistic force to contribute towards the creation of a more diverse and inclusive higher education landscape.

"Women are working longer - that is a fact. Women aged over 50 are the fastest growing segment of the workforce. Menopause is inevitable for all women. Ensuring your work environment is equipped and well placed to help women fulfil their potential at every stage of life is essential for every organisation."

Cognitive behaviour therapy is a brief, non-medical approach that can be helpful for a range of health problems, including anxiety and stress, depressed mood, hot flushes and night sweats, sleep problems and fatigue. CBT helps people to develop practical ways of managing problems and provides new coping skills and useful strategies. For this reason, it can be a helpful approach to try because the skills can be applied to different problems, and can improve wellbeing in general.

"When a woman goes through the menopause, the symptoms can have a devastating effect on her work life, social life, and relationships. Women going through the menopause often find that they are met with a lack of understanding and empathy in their workplace. Misunderstanding and lack of information about the menopause contribute to everything from dips in employee performance to loss of employees. It is important therefore that organisations make every effort to give their employees the tools necessary to ensure an understanding of the menopause is firmly embedded at all levels within an organisation."

Stephen Brookfield talks about how when teaching something that we love, how difficult it is for us to empathise with students that find the topic boring. The more that we teach the topic, the further removed we become from our first experiences of learning it and the less empathy we are likely to have. Yet empathy and respect strongly correlate with student motivation and motivation is essential to developing understanding. This, final session will explore the importance of empathy and respect.

This ¾ hr workshop, part 3 of a 3 part series, explored resilience coaching. Resilience is not exclusively being able to ‘bounce back’ from adversity, but ra...

This ¾ hr workshop, part 2 of a 3 part series, explored resilience coaching. Resilience is not exclusively being able to ‘bounce back’ from adversity, but rather a set of tools, exercises, activities that build resilience in a person, enabling them not just to survive, but thrive through the small and big life events.This workshop was not just for coaches or mentors, but for anyone who functions within an environment that requires a deeper level of listening i.e., teachers, lecturers, team leaders, team members, support staff, parents etc.

This ¾ hr workshop, part 1 of a 3 part series, explored resilience coaching. Resilience is not exclusively being able to ‘bounce back’ from adversity, but rather a set of tools, exercises, activities that build resilience in a person, enabling them not just to survive, but thrive through the small and big life events.This workshop was not just for coaches or mentors, but for anyone who functions within an environment that requires a deeper level of listening i.e., teachers, lecturers, team leaders, team members, support staff, parents etc.

Research has shown that mindfulness can alter the physical structure of our brains and if practiced regularly can increase those parts of the brain that deal with attention and processing sensory input (Sara Lazar - Harvard Medical School). This ¾ hr workshop briefly explored some coaching and mentoring techniques using a mindful approach as well as the use of some specific mindfulness tools. This workshop was not just for coaches or mentors, but for anyone who functions within an environment that requires a deeper level of listening i.e., teachers, lecturers, team leaders, team members, support staff, parents etc.

'Integrating wellbeing and student engagement: A coaching approach' This ¾ hr talk briefly explores how the inclusion of wellbeing elements can positively contribute to student engagement.